Program on Public Life
October 2009 - Data-Net: 2008 Campaign Spending and district by district turnout, 2010 Redistricting
This issue looks back once more to the 2008 elections, and forward to the 2010 redistricting proces. Two aspects of the 2008 election are examined more closely: campaign spending and voter turnout. On the spending side, Democrats continue to dominate. This is true in overall total spending, by each house of the General Assembly, and by top spenders for each party. The voter turnout piece looks at the district level, examining how some members of the General Assembly win with the support of many more voters than other members do, despite districts being basically the same size. Finally, we look at 2010 population projections for each county and how that may affect the number of representatives districts have. Some counties will gain members while others will inevitably lose. Click below to read more.
Data-Net No 49: Legislative Electoral Trends
June 2009 - Carolina Context: Changing Demographics and the Aging Workforce
This issue examines aging patterns across the state in the context of the current economy. An aging population plus tough economic times means that those older workers who have jobs are likely to stay in them longer, and older North Carolinians who need to work are having a tougher time than ever finding it. For older workers, landing a job can be difficult in the best of labor markets, and with the problem currently exacerbated, the authors offer policy options - some already in place in other states - to ease some of the challenges felt by this demographic. To read more click here.
May 2009 - Carolina Context: North Carolina Missing Out On Millions
The current issue of Carolina Context chronicles how North Carolina is failing to maximize the federal assistance available to our most vulnerable residents. Each program – from food stamps to school lunch programs to SCHIP (and more) – has differing eligibility requirements and application procedures. This results in many eligible persons and families failing to receive all the assistance for which they qualify, to the tune of over $700,000,000 annually. Using all available resources to aid economically disadvantaged families is critical in the best of times, but in an economic downturn it is essential. The authors of this issue detail the dollars lost and eligibility requirements for each program and also explore policy alternatives available to the state for remedying the problem. Click below to read more.
Struggling North Carolinians Missing Out On Much-Needed Federal Assistance
The latest issue of DataNet takes an in-depth look at the 2008 general election in North Carolina. In this issue we take a look at exit poll data to paint a picture of how the state electorate has changed over the last few election cycles. In addition, we compare the performances of the presidential and gubernatorial candidates to that of their counterparts in 2004, and preview population changes and how they may impact redistricting after the 2010 Census.
OUR PUBLICATIONS
The Program publishes three newsletter-type publications: NC DataNet on North Carolina Demographic and electoral trends; SouthNow on regional politics and issues; and Carolina Context white papers on North Carolina topics. Current issues can be accessed below and archives of these publications can be accessed on this website.
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Current Issue: May 2009 - North Carolina's Unclaimed Federal Dollars The deep national recession has taken a severe toll on North Carolina's economy and government and on its people. As if a trap door had opened beneath the state's economy, more than a quarter of a million workers have lost their jobs in the past year. READ MORE
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Current Issue: April 2009 North Carolina General Election This issue of NC DataNet examines the 2009 general election, when North Carolina voted for a Democratic presidential candidate for the first time since 1976 (Jimmy Carter). This DataNet examines the performance of the presidential and gubernatorial candidates by economic development region, and compares them to their counterparts in 2004. A view of population changes likely to impact 2010 redistricting is also included. |
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Over the years, most students of Southern history have been quite unimpressed with the level of entrepreneurship—defined any which way—present in the region at any point in its history. The “conventional wisdom” is that the South has traditionally lacked the entrepreneurial vigor of the Northeast, the Midwest, and the West, which goes a long way in explaining why the performance of the region’s economy has trailed the performance of other regions for such a long time... READ MORE |
