News About Dan Forest

Forest the choice for lieutenant governor

October 30th, 2012

Many candidates are competing for our attention and vote, but one candidate stands out from the rest: Dan Forest, candidate for Lt. Governor.



Dan is not a professional politician or bureaucrat. He is a successful businessman who has served as Senior Partner and President of our state’s largest architectural firm. Dan is also a family man who is raising four kids with his wife. He understands we have a moral obligation to pass along a strong and debt-free future to our kids and grandkids. Dan is also a servant who has demonstrated compassion for his community as the former Chairman of Wake Forest Pregnancy Support Services.



Please join me in voting for a businessman, family man, and servant for Lt. Governor. Please join me in voting for Dan Forest for Lt. Governor.







JACK SAWYER

Mebane

http://www.thetimesnews.com/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/unedited-letters/forest-the-choice-for-lieutenant-governor-1.39054

Lieutenant governor race running close in NC

October 30th, 2012

Although most political analysts give Republican gubernatorial candidate Pat McCrory the upper hand in the N.C. governor race, the race for the state’s second-in-command is still up in the air.



According to a recent poll of more than 1,000 likely N.C. voters by left-leaning Public Policy Polling, McCrory is ahead of Democratic Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton by 10 percentage points.



But the candidates for lieutenant governor, Linda Coleman, a Democrat, and Dan Forest, a Republican, are neck-and-neck in the poll. Thirty-seven percent of voters surveyed said they would vote for Coleman, while 38 percent support Forest.



“We think it’s because people don’t really know who they are and are basing them on their party affiliation,” said Holly Holbrook, intern at Public Policy Polling.



President Barack Obama’s campaign efforts in the state and Forest’s conservative orthodoxy will give Coleman a slight edge, said Steven Greene, political science professor at N.C. State University.



“Forest really is a pretty far-right politician in a state much more inclined to elect someone closer to the center,” Greene said in an email.



On higher education issues, Forest and Coleman both agree that performance-based funding — tied to retention and graduation rates — would improve universities’ efficiency.



But the candidates differ on other platform points.



While Forest wants to reevaluate the current education system and appropriate funds accordingly, Coleman believes that funding education is key to the state’s economic success.



“We need to invest more in education,” she said. “It is education that attracts businesses to our state and creates jobs in the private sector.”



But Forest, who worked in the private sector, believes the way to bring jobs to North Carolina and fix the economy is to run the government like a business, he said.

“Our government is broke. They don’t call it that, but it’s broke,” he said.



The state’s budget could be managed more efficiently with people used to managing money, Forest said.



“The public sector spends money — somebody else’s rather than their own,” he said. “We need people with a business background to run the government.”



Only two lieutenant governors have come from the opposite party from the governor in the past 50 years — once in 1972, and again in 1984, said Ferrel Guillory, UNC-CH journalism professor.



“They didn’t get into fist fights. In some cases they work together, in other cases they didn’t,” he said. “There’s a certain amount of political rivalry.”



Contact the desk editor at state@dailytarheel.com.

http://www.dailytarheel.com/article/2012/10/lieutenant-governor-race-running-close-in-nc

GOP’s Forest campaigns for lt. governor in Charlotte Read more here: <a href="http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/10/23/3615287/gops-forest-campaigns-for-lt-governor.html#storylink">http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/10/23/3615287/gops-forest-campaigns-for-lt-governor.html#storylink</a>=cpy

October 23rd, 2012

Republican Dan Forest brought North Carolina’s undercard race to Charlotte Monday, speaking to a conference of the N.C. League of Municipalities.



Forest faces Democrat Linda Coleman of Wake County. She hopes to become the first African-American woman to hold statewide office in North Carolina.



Forest, 45, is the son of U.S. Rep. Sue Myrick of Charlotte. Like GOP gubernatorial candidate Pat McCrory, a former mayor, he has Charlotte ties.



He spent part of his youth in Charlotte public schools, including McClintock middle school and East Mecklenburg High School. After graduating from high school in Columbia and starting college at the University of South Carolina, he returned to Charlotte and graduated from UNCC.



He’s now a retired architect in Raleigh.



Coleman, 63, is a former legislator appointed by Gov. Bev Perdue to head the Office of State Personnel. She’s gotten help from the state employees’ political action committee, which has said it bought $200,000 in TV ads supporting her.



Through June, Forest had raised $531,000 to Coleman’s $66,000.



Coleman, citing scheduling conflicts, did not attend the N.C. League of Municipalities at the Charlotte Convention Center. She’ll return to Charlotte Thursday for a fundraiser in Dilworth.



Forest told the municipal leaders he would focus on tax and regulatory reform as well as education.



But while the lieutenant governor presides over the N.C. Senate, the office has little concrete power. Forest said he would be “a loud voice for education” and work with what he expects to be GOP majorities in the legislature and a Republican in the governor’s office.



“Part of the lieutenant governor’s role is to make the governor look good,” he said.



Morrill: 704-358-5059

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/10/23/3615287/gops-forest-campaigns-for-lt-governor.html

GOP rallies volunteers in Asheville

October 23rd, 2012

GOP rallies volunteers in Asheville

Filed under: Uncategorized — Jon Ostendorff @ 2:18 pm

Republican candidates encouraged volunteers to get out the vote today at the party’s Victory Headquarters in Asheville.



Speakers included state schools superintendent candidate John Tedesco, lieutenant governor candidate Dan Forest, local House 115 candidate Nathan Ramsey and House 119 candidate Mike Clampitt.



Both Republican congressional candidates also attended as did state party chairman Robin Hayes.





Republican intern Tim Griggs has made 30,000 phone calls encouraging people to vote for conservatives

Intern Tim Griggs, 18, got a shout out from the candidates for his work with the campaign.



He’s made 30,000 phone calls and knocked on doors.



Griggs, a home-school high school graduate, said he the experience has been a lot of work but he’s committed to getting conservatives in office.



“I feel it’s been necessary,” he said. “This year the Democrats have gone so far to the left, Barack Obama’s policies are so far to the left, and it’s just to the point where we have to do something about it.”

http://blogs2.citizen-times.com/politics/2012/10/23/gop-rallies-volunteers-in-asheville/

McCrory urges his supporters to back Forest in Lt. Gov. race

October 23rd, 2012

Pat McCrory, the Republican candidate for governor, is calling on his supporters to give him the lieutenant governor he needs "to get the job done."

In an automated phone call to several hundred thousand supporters around the state, McCrory urged everyone to vote for Dan Forest, his party's nominee for the post:

"Hi, I'm Pat McCrory with a quick message. I hope I can count on your support at the ballot box, but please don't stop there. Please give me the Lieutenant Governor I need to get the job done. That person is Dan Forest. Dan and I have a great working relationship and we share a similar vision for getting North Carolina back to work. Dan's background is business, not politics, and I need him in my administration. The winner of this race will hold the gavel over the State Senate and will preside over the agenda set by the next Governor and General Assembly. Don't wait for November 6th - go vote early - and please vote for Dan Forest for Lt. Governor. I'm Pat McCrory and thank you for your support."

"I look forward to serving with Pat McCrory and helping get North Carolina back to work," Forest said in a release.



Read more here: <a href="http://projects.newsobserver.com/node/26152#storylink">http://projects.newsobserver.com/node/26152#storylink</a>=cpy

http://projects.newsobserver.com/node/26152

9 On Your Side talks to your candidates for NC Lt. Governor

October 23rd, 2012

GREENVILLE, N.C. -- It’s an educator versus an architect; a politician versus someone with no political background. You will have to make a choice between two candidates for Lieutenant Governor on Election Day: Democrat Linda Coleman and Republican Dan Forest.



The two candidates offer a stark contrast.



Our state is getting recognized for much more than its great geography, warm climate and higher education. MentionNorth Carolina and critics may give you the daunting statistics:



- 5th highest unemployment in the country



- Highest corporate tax rate in the southeast



- Highest gas tax



- Highest personal income tax in the southeast.



This is the same state that used to be the world leader in tobacco, textiles and banking. The two candidates for Lieutenant Governor say they know exactly how to do fix our state.



“We need to continue investing,” says Coleman. “One of the things we need to do…our infrastructure, our quality of life. Industry based recruitment.”



“We need to get government out of the way. Reduce the size of government out of the way. Reduce the size of government…grow the size of our economy,” says Forest.



When it comes to K-12 public school education in North Carolina, our state ranks as one of the worst in the country.



“We need to reinvest in education,” Coleman says. “We need to make sure we are investing in job training, in high tech research and investing in all of those things that have made our state great over the years.”



“I think we need to put the power of education back in the hands of the parents,” Forest says. “Back in the hands of the teachers, get it out of the hands of bureaucrats who sit in Raleigh or D.C. telling how to run their education program.



The bottom line is this: you have an architect running against a former educator. So why should you vote for them?



“I'm running for Lt. Governor so I can help protect the middle class. And that means investing in education, in job training and high research,” Coleman says.



“I think architects are well suited for that arena. By nature of training we are visionaries, we are planners we are creative problem solvers…necessary for good leadership in state government,” Forest says.



9 On Your Side wants you to stay informed when you head to the polls. For the latest campaign news, use the keywords “Campaign 2012.”

http://www2.wnct.com/news/2012/oct/23/9-your-side-talks-your-candidates-nc-lt-governor-ar-2719787/

Lieutenant governor candidate to appear in Winston-Salem Tuesday

October 9th, 2012

Dan Forest, the Republican candidate for N.C. lieutenant governor, will visit Winston-Salem and Clemmons Tuesday on campaign stops, as a part of his "economic development listening tour."



Forest, of Raleigh, is visiting 70-plus counties, meeting with economic developers, business leaders and small business owners.



The public is invited to the following events:



From 11:15 a.m. to noon, he will tour Raymond Supply Co., 720 Old Northwest Blvd. in Winston-Salem.

From 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m., he will attend a meeting of the Western Forsyth Rotary club at Big Shotz, 1480 River Ridge Road in Clemmons.

Voters will choose between Forest and Linda Coleman of Knightdale, the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor.



The general election is Nov. 6. Early voting begins Oct. 18.

http://www2.journalnow.com/news/2012/oct/08/lieutenant-governor-candidate-to-appear-in-winston-ar-2675457/

Dan Forest, candidate for lieutenant governor, visits Thor-Lo

October 5th, 2012

ROCKWELL - Brenda Canaday is one of more than a dozen employees at Thor-Lo Finishing Plant who got to shake hands with a man who hopes to be the future lieutenant governor.



Dan Forest, who is running against Democrat Linda Coleman for the seat being vacated by Walter Dalton, was at the Rockwell sock manufacturing plant this week.



Forest was visiting as part of his 70-plus county "economic development listening tour."



The tour is an opportunity for the Raleigh architect to hear from economic developers, business leaders and owners about North Carolina's needs.



"I thought it was wonderful. We enjoyed it," Canaday said.



It's not often the company has a politician visit them. In fact, it's never happened, she said.



Canaday, who, was working Wednesday the day of the tour, said the employees really loved the experience.



This isn't Forest's first visit to Rowan County. In June during his most recent visit, Forest along with campaign staffers and volunteers, went door-to-door aboard his "Bubba" bus to garner support from local constituents.



In April, Forest also stopped in Salisbury as part of his 30-day state tour.



Current Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton is running for governor, leaving his seat open.



Forest is the son of U.S. Rep. Sue Myrick, who will retire this year from Congress.



Forest, along with campaign staff and volunteers toured the plant where they were able to see the operation start-to-finish.



Greg Edds, chairman of the Rowan Republican Party, was also in attendance, as was Carl Ford, vice chairman of the Rowan County Commissioners.



"We're in counties all over the state meeting with small business owners to see what makes the economy go," Forest said.



Forest said he wants to meet as many people as he can. He has traveled to all 100 counties in North Carolina throughout his three tour stops.



Several months ago Forest met Thorlo owner, Jim Throneburg, through friend, Jimmy Isley, who is with the company's IT Department. It was part of his mission to reach out to small businesses.



"We want to know what we need to do to facilitate job growth. We need to get people back to work," he said.



Forest said he enjoyed the tour, saying he loves the whole process of putting things together.



"It's obvious these folks make it a top priority," he said.



While on the tour, Forest met Debbie Allen, who after being diagnosed with and treated for cancer, returned to work in September. She had been away from work since June 2011.



He celebrated Allen's resolve to return to work, chatting with her for a few minutes before she returned from her break.



"If Dan Forest doesn't win this race then hard work can't win a race," said Greg Edds, chairman of the Republican Party.



Kevin Gooden, a distribution resource and manager with the company said "we were pleased to have him tour the facility. It was an honor."



Contact reporter Shavonne Potts at 704-797-4253.

http://www.salisburypost.com/News/100512-Dan-Forest-Thorlo-tour

Mike Huckabee and Dan Forest Love Them Some Chick-fil-A

October 5th, 2012

Mike Huckabee stars is a quirky web video for Republican lieutenant governor candidate Dan Forest. He leans on a Forest campaign sign and talks to the camera for a minute, laying out the parameters for the race. He casts Democrat Linda Coleman as a "union-backed career politician" and Forest as a "businessperson."

Coleman is backed by the state employees union and quit her job in state government to run for the state's No. 2 post.

The amusing part comes at the end when Forest wanders into the camera's view carrying a Chik-Fil-A cup and a chicken sandwich, handing it to Huckabee, the former presidential candidate.

"Mike, your sandwich is getting cold," Forest says. "Oh, Chik-Fil-A. Thanks, man," Huckabee replies.

"I'm Dan Forest and I ask for your support."

"Just vote your values," Huckabee adds at the end, holding up a sandwich that has become a political pawn this election year.

Forest campaign manager Hal Weatherman said it was a spontaneous video shot a couple weeks ago when Huckabee came to Raleigh for a Forest fundraiser. "We had Chik-Fil-A there and he was hungry," he said.

"Sometimes you have to have fun (while) you're campaigning," he added. "But it also adds to the message."



Read more here: <a href="http://projects.newsobserver.com/under_the_dome/mike_huckabee_and_dan_forest_love_them_some_chikfila#storylink">http://projects.newsobserver.com/under_the_dome/mike_huckabee_and_dan_forest_love_them_some_chikfila#storylink</a>=cpy

http://projects.newsobserver.com/under_the_dome/mike_huckabee_and_dan_forest_love_them_some_chikfila

Forest Runs Against Coleman In Contest for Lieutenant Governor

September 27th, 2012

RALEIGH — Tea Party favorite and political newcomer Dan Forest is calling for an “education revolution.” He believes he is better suited as a Republican outsider to deliver a vital sea change of innovation than his Democratic opponent for lieutenant governor, Linda Coleman, a career government employee.



Forest is the son of U.S. Rep. Sue Myrick, R-9th District, who is retiring after nine terms in Congress. He champions school choice, education vouchers, and virtual schools. He would like make the State Board of Education more accountable and shake up its structure.



“I think we need to have an educational revolution,” Forest said. “I think we have to change things quite significantly.”



The lieutenant governor is the No. 2 person in state government, sits on the 10-member Council of State, and presides over the Senate. It is the only elective position to have both executive and legislative duties. The lieutenant governor sits on the North Carolina Board of Community Colleges and State Board of Education.

http://www.carolinajournal.com/exclusives/display_exclusive.html?id=9527