North Carolina: Race of the Century

NORTH CAROLINA: RACE OF THE CENTURY examines the role of the media within the context of the North Carolina political campaigns, leading up to coverage of the contest involving the incumbent Senator Jesse Helms and Harvey Gantt, former mayor of Charlotte. Critical factors of race and credibility were examined along with Gantt's issues-oriented campaign strategies. The election results found that the matters of race and damaging race-baiting ads dominated the voters' agenda toward the final weeks of the 1990 Senatorial campaign. In a state dominated by the Democratic Party, the issues-oriented campaign of the Democratic nominee, Harvey Gantt, did not prevail. Specifically, the results indicated that Gantt narrowly won urban cities (i.e. Charlotte); however, Senator Jesse Helms prevailed and dominated small towns. Of equal importance, the preamble to the North Carolina Democratic Constitution aptly stated the importance of party unity, but "yellow dog" Democrats and "Jessecrats" crossed over to cast their ballots for Senator Helms. Unquestionably race played a role in the election; however, it was not the determining factor. The art of skillfully orchestrating a political campaign was evident in Senator Helm's success. Moreover, Gantt's campaign ads which targeted specific issues were important to some voters. The undecided voters and "Jessecrats" viewed loyalty, power, influence, religion, values and race as some of the key factors in the election. And yes, Senator Helms' ancestral roots from small-town, Monroe, North Carolina, added value and trust for constituencies, Republican, Democrat and Independent alike. Powell wrote this book to convey the interrelationship between politics and the media, examining connections existing in the 1700s and still existing today. The case study specifically examines Southern politics, as they relate to some of North Carolina's powerful political figures. Powell's research covers historical documents in which political leaflets and campaign images were embedded in the culture that helped to shape the political reality of voters for centuries. Although the news media continue to exert strong influence on American culture, the political landscape has changed in the South and elsewhere. The art of developing a skillful campaign has become an important key for political success-nowhere has this been more evident than in North Carolina during the 1990 contest between Harvey Gantt and Senator Jesse Helms: the Race of the Century.