Each in three sentences or less:
1. The surprise isn’t that the marriage amendment passed, but rather by how much it passed up. Was expected like 55 percent in favor, not the 61 percent it actually got.
2. The marriage amendment drove turnout much more than political insiders were expecting — 34 percent turnout was huge without a meaningful presidential primary, no Senate race this year, a GOP coronation for Pat McCrory and a very low profile Democratic gubernatorial primary.
3. Big surprise was that the marriage amendment carried Guilford (Greensboro) and New Hanover (Wilmington) counties. And New Hanover may want to rethink its film making-based economic development model as a result… attracting film projects there may have just gotten a little tougher.
4. Still agree with Thom Tillis that the marriage amendment will likely be repealed within 20 years. For that to happen though, the issue will have to do much better in Republican-leaning suburban counties like Union and Cabarrus (For votes: Union County 73 percent, Cabarrus County 70 percent).
5. The other thing to watch for is if/when gay rights becomes widely regarded as a civil right issue in the African American community.
6. Having some money to buy TV ads matters, and it carried the day in the Democratic gubernatorial primary.
7. Bill Faison, the man who thought he was a lion, turned out to be a mouse and got only 2,400 votes more than Gardenia M. Henley, one of the minor candidates in the race. He was still right a few months ago that Bev Perdue’s reelection chances were weak but he didn’t make many friends in Democratic circles by publicly saying that.
8. Pittenger v. Pendergraph in a runoff is completely unsurprising.
9. That the Republican are going to have a runoff for lieutenant governor was expected. That the runoff doesn’t include Rep. Dale Folwell, who finishing third, is what’s unexpected. Folwell is Speaker Pro Tempore of the N.C. House.
