Over the past decade in Durham, no local candidate has won without backing from one of two dominant political action committees: the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People or the People’s Alliance.
The March 3 primary was no different. No candidate without an endorsement from one of the two PACs won office in the county’s eight competitive races.
Durham’s PAC endorsements often help clarify low-information, low-turnout elections for voters, said Duke professor Mac McCorkle, by increasing candidate name recognition and giving them credibility.
Tess Thomas, a voter who was casting her ballot Tuesday at Club Boulevard Elementary School, agrees. “Definitely, I think, in primaries and smaller races, where there’s not as much coverage of all the candidates, I do follow some of these PACs,” she said.
People’s Alliance-endorsed candidates dominated the school board contest once again this election. In the past decade, 100% of winning Board of Education candidates have been on the alliance slate. This year, all four of the winning candidates were backed by the alliance.
Newer players Durham for All, which was founded in 2017, and Durham Association of Educators also had a victorious night. The two groups backed a four-person school board slate that was also endorsed by the People’s Alliance. All four won their elections.
The influence of endorsements was less clear in the Democratic primary for the N.C.’s Fourth Congressional District. While Allam, the alliance-endorsed candidate, won Durham County by more than 5%, Allam lost Orange and Chatham counties and barely won Wake.
“The People’s Alliance is the best endorsement by far in Durham County,” said McCorkle. “But it lacks sway outside of Durham.”
In Durham, PACs don’t play their traditional role of “money vehicles,” said McCorkle. Instead, Durham’s PACs almost function like local political parties, with endorsement meetings, poll workers, and mailers.
“Durham is a one-party town. There’s no Republican presence of any sort,” said McCorkle. “In that situation, you grow mini-parties. The PA [and the Committee] are more sub-party institutions, rather than money machines.”
Looking forward, McCorkle doesn’t see the PAC influence on Durham fading. But, as PAC membership ages, that could inspire new challengers to the People’s Alliance and the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People.
“If you go back, the PA was a challenge to the Durham Voter’s Alliance, which was the first white liberal PAC,” said McCorkle. “As the Committee ages, will you see a younger black political grouping develop in Durham?”
Above: Percentage of candidates endorsed by the People’s Alliance or the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People who prevailed in the March 3 primary. Data analysis and graphic by Katelyn Cai — The 9th Street Journal
Katelyn Cai
