Ed Ridpath

After a year and a half of planning, fundraising, organizing, and working this campaign, I am now more excited than ever. We are down to 5 months until the November election, and the very real anticipation of our victory increases every day.

Make no mistake; this will be a close, hard fought campaign. With wealthy special interest money, incumbency, and the press megaphone of minority leadership, my opponent is formidable. But together, we can fight back and win this competitive swing district.

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Our grassroots effort has knocked on the doors of over 6000 voters, with the goal of doubling that in the next 5 months. Our fundraising effort continues to attract donors large and small from across our state, but is constantly challenged to match the many PACs and high-dollar donors that shovel money into my opponent's coffers.

The numbers and the issues continue to favor us, too. There have been over 10,000 newly registered voters in the district since 2006, most as Democrat and Unaffiliated. The increased turnout expected for this presidential year alone is expected to add over 5% to our margin from 2006. Voters are now more focused on the basics of our government, like education, transportation, health care, environment, and justice, rather than divisive social issues and irresponsible scare tactics.

We can't afford to miss this opportunity and time is running short. Please commit now to support the Ed Ridpath campaign by volunteering your valuable time, contributing your hard-earned money, and encouraging your friends and family to do the same.

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Door Knocking Canvass June 28th

Get to the grassroots by talking to voters one-on-one. Join me and other volunteers to door knock Southern Wake County neighborhoods.

We will meet Saturday, June 28th at 10:00 AM at the Bushiban Coffee shop, in the Harris Teeter shopping center on the corner of US 401 and Ten-Ten road, just south of Raleigh/Garner and just north of Wake Tech Community College.

Training and partnering provided, and other candidates are welcome to join in. RSVP online or for more information, please contact Evan Degnan, Field Director at edegnan@email.unc.edu or (336) 817-1370

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Issue: Annexation and Arrogance

The privilege of North Carolina towns to involuntarily annex adjacent unincorporated property into the town limits could be a valuable tool to manage growth, share expensive public utilities and services, and enhance property values long term.

However, many towns have severely abused this privilege with high-handedness before annexation and foot-dragging on providing promised services afterwards. This level of arrogance and neglect is simply wrong and needs to be addressed by our General Assembly.

I think the best way to address this now is the proposed one year moratorium on involuntary annexation, currently in committee in the NC House. During this moratorium, ensuring that property owners being annexed have a strong voice in the process, are treated with respect and fairness, and are delivered the promised services should be a legislative priority.

I urge our General Assembly, including my opponent, to pass the annexation moratorium and a study of annexation issues and solutions during this short session.

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Thank You

Our Apex Reception in May was a rousing success. I am grateful to everyone who attended and who pitched in and helped, but I would like to single out a few for a special "Thank you!"

First, Congressman David Price, a gracious man who has a firm grasp of our national issues, as well as the issues of the day right here in Southern Wake County. I am proud he represents me in the US House, and I am humbly grateful for his support.

Second, thank you to my future NC House colleagues from the Southwest corner of Wake County. Representative Ty Harrell serves Apex, Morrisville, Cary, and part of Raleigh with great distinction. He showed up with his young children in tow to wow the crowd, and make the pitch for having me join him in the North Carolina House. Al Swanstrom, also a strong grassroots challenger candidate to serve Apex and Cary, took a short break from his door-knocking to pitch the idea of a trifecta of Harrell, Swanstrom, and Ridpath in November. Thank you both for your support and friendship.

Finally, I would like to thank Ann Mullin, who, with her husband Pat, put the entire event together and made it the great success it was. Thank you for your commitment to real change for Apex and for North Carolina.

Ed Ridpath

The month of May started with a whirlwind of events leading up to the historic primary election Tuesday. As we all unite behind the primary victors, is vital over the next 6 months to work hard to repeat the turnout, energy, and optimism in the November general election.

We can sweep to victory across the board, especially in these close local races. The prize of defeating the NC House Republican Minority Leader is in our grasp, but my hard work is not enough! I cannot finish the job without you.

Please give your support to the campaign by contributing, volunteering, and telling all your friends and family. This is an opportunity you don't want to waste. The future of North Carolina is too important to leave this, or any other close contest, on the table in November.

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Very Special Guest: Congressman David Price

Everyone on the campaign is so excited about our upcoming Afternoon Reception with Congressman David Price, who earned a well-deserved shout out from Barack Obama in Tuesday night's victory speech.

We are celebrating in the heart of Historic Downtown Apex, and our Apex supporters are out in force. Please join Apex Council member Bill Jensen, Special Guests Rep. Ty Harrell and NC House candidate Al Swanstrom, plus many other elected officials, candidates, and supporters.

Date: Sunday, May 18th, 2008
Time: 2:30-4:00 PM
Place: Halle Cultural Art Center
Address: 237 North Salem Street, Apex

RSVP: Online or info@edridpath.com

You can also join our final planning session this Saturday, May 10th, 10:00 AM at the home of Ann Mullin, 303 Lyndenbury Dr, Apex.

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Issue: Our tanking economy

It is well known that the business cycle goes up and down. Many of the government policies put in place over the last century have the purpose of smoothing out the "boom & bust" nature of any vibrant economy. Prudent policies protect our poor and middle class, even out tax burdens, and invest in our long term prosperity.

But we are now suffering from the recent shock in gas and grocery prices, increased job losses, and mortgage foreclosures. The mainstays of the American dream of home ownership, a decent education, and jobs with advancement are fast slipping away.

While we can wish that we as a nation had prepared better for the future with low or no deficits, better average fuel economy for our cars, and better regulation and enforcement on mortgage lenders, we have to start where we are right now, and apply the hard lessons to the future.

North Carolina is in better shape than many other states. We have been conservative in budget forecasting and put surpluses into our rainy day funds and investments in our future. That means we can be pro-active in providing real relief to those that are hit hardest by the slumping economy. We already have capped the gas tax and implemented the Earned Income Tax Credit.

We need to do more to help families facing foreclosure and expand our job training programs. We need to raise the exemptions on property tax for seniors, and expand them to make affordable housing available to everyone.

Whether economic times are good or bad, we need to continue saving and investing in the future of North Carolina and its great people.

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Thank You

I wish to thank all the Democratic and yes, Republican candidates in Tuesday's primary election who stood up to serve their communities. Whether they won or lost, they provided a voice to the issues that concern their neighbors, and each changed, in ways large and small, the direction of our democracy, and the future of our state and our nation.

Everyone who has thrown their hat in the ring deserves our gratitude for making this democracy work. Thank you, fellow candidates.

We are winning.

In every way a campaign can be measured, we are winning.

Voter contact: We already visited over 5,000 voters at their door.

Organization: We are hiring a Campaign Manager in May, following our plan and budget, recruiting volunteers and expanding donor lists, and coordinating with the Democratic Party and other candidates.

Media: We have articles and letters to the editor published, ads running in print and online, active in social networking sites and internet blogs, email newsletters and action alerts, and an interactive website.

Issues: We focus on our key issues of Roads and Schools, plus improving Health Care, Public Safety and Crime Reduction, Trust and Ethics, Immigration, Mental Health, Diversity, Worker Rights, and Open Space. We continue to listen to voters for new issues to address.

Superior Campaign: We have no primary in 2008, a more seasoned candidate and campaign, better message, more supporters and greater name recognition.

Momentum: There are 10,000 new voters, mostly Democrat and Unaffiliated and greater turnout expected for the presidential election. Our get out the vote (GOTV) will be critical - and costly.

Will you help us to keep winning?

I am excited and motivated to continue to work hard through November and beyond, serving fellow North Carolinians in the NC House. But in spite of all this encouraging news, I simply cannot win without your help. And as wealthy special interests see how vulnerable my opponent is, they will dig deep. But we need to dig deeper, and we need you to chip in now.

April 19th is the very last day of this reporting period, and we need an additional $7,000 to meet our goals. Keep us winning by contributing $35, $70, $140, or more before our deadline.

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Tell A Friend

Apex Peak Fest May 3rd

Come out to Historic Downtown Apex and have fun, meet Ed Ridpath and other candidates, register voters, show your pride just 3 days before the big primary! Our Booth is near the corner of Salem and Center Streets, and we will be there from 9 AM to 5 PM on Saturday, May 3rd. RSVP or Volunteer.

This is Huge! May 18th.

Congressman David Price will be our very special guest for a Sunday afternoon Reception on May 18th at 2:30 PM at the Halle Cultural Arts Center in Historic Downtown Apex. We also have special guests Ty Harrell and Al Swanstrom, and Apex Town Council Council Members Bill Jensen and Bill Sutton. Mark your calendars now for this after-primary celebration. RSVP or Volunteer

Issue: Valuing Hard Work

In my "day job", I am a professional working at the business and technical interface of a large company. I see the business needs to balance investments in equipment with investments in people. However, our current laws too often value capital over labor. To maintain our shared prosperity and the basics of the American dream, we must restore the balance of valuing hard work over wealth.

Treating workers fairly is not only fundamentally right; it is also good for business and our community. Good salary, benefits, and safe working conditions expand the middle class, reduce turnover, and improve productivity. Rather than living hand to mouth, workers and their families can improve their lives and our community.

A basic constitutional right to free association also means workers need to be free to join unions, to collectively bargain in good faith, and be free from intimidation by employers or the government.
A special word about North Carolina State Employees: First and foremost, the way we treat our state employees should be a model for how we expect North Carolina businesses to treat all their workers. Unfortunately, the opposite is true.

State employees are effectively denied access to unions and collective bargaining. Salary and benefits are sorely lacking and are first on the chopping block come budget time, instead of fully funding the statutory Pay Plan. Classes of state employees are being carved out and denied standard legal protections. The burden of funding the retirement system and dependant health care is put on the shoulders of state employees.

This poor treatment of state employees has resulted in high turnover to private and even local public sector jobs. State workers strain under increased work and case loads. It becomes difficult to provide the effective and efficient services the people and businesses of North Carolina deserve. It is not just bad for state employees; it is bad for North Carolina.

In business or government, we need to put hard working employees at the head of line.

Thank you!

I want to tip my hat to my Apex Supporters. With the Apex Peak Fest May 3rd and our big reception on May 18th, everyone has stepped up to bringing our campaign to town in a big way.

Thank you to the crew in Apex, the Peak of Good Living and Good Friends.

Ed Ridpath

Democratic Candidate for NC House 37

Now it is official: Ed Ridpath is the Democratic Party Nominee for NC House 37. No other Democrat filed, so there is no primary needed. This is great, because the campaign can continue to focus 100% on winning in November. With less than 8 months to go, we still have most of the hard work ahead of us. We have thousands of voters left to contact; hundreds of volunteers and donors to energize; dozens of fundraisers, house parties, and meet & greets to plan; and many forums, festivals, and public meetings to attend. You help is needed now to assure our victory. Please volunteer or contribute today.

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The Voters Agree

After knocking on the doors of over 4000 voters so far, one thing is clear; the voters agree that our message is right.
When I talk about focusing on the fundamentals: Roads & Schools, they nod in agreement. When I point out the neglect suffered by Southern Wake County at the hands of our current representation, their concern is clear. When I explain that we have a mix of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents that all deserve to be represented, they smile at the relief from partisan politics. When I say I want to stand up for all of us in the General Assembly, they shake my hand, wish me good luck, and commit to telling their family, friends, and neighbors about this grassroots campaign. Building Bridges is more than a campaign slogan; it is the approach to governing that my fellow voters in Southern Wake County expect of their representative to the North Carolina House.

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March Art Gallery Fundraiser

Celebrate Spring. Enjoy Fine Refreshments. Share Exciting Company. Appreciate Great Art. Support Ed Ridpath For the NC House. Please come to the Lee Hansley Art Gallery 225 Glenwood Ave, Raleigh Thursday, March 27th from 5:30-7:00 PM Suggested Admission: $25 Sponsorships available: $100 Bronze, $250 Silver, $500 Gold, $1000 Platinum.

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Issue: Open Space

I grew up in a small lake front home in the suburbs of Minneapolis, where I could enjoy swimming, boating, and fishing. I would visit my grandparents who lived in a rural farming community, and was introduced to farm life. I spent many summers in my youth camping in the pristine Boundary Waters Canoe Area of northern Minnesota. As a young Cub Scout, I went on hikes in nearby parks and natural areas. I developed a deep appreciation of nature, agriculture, and the real value a variety of local open spaces can give a community. This appreciation of natural areas, parks, farmland, and rural living attracted me to Southern Wake County and my home in Fuquay-Varina. We have many working farms, large stretches of still natural land, and several parks that add greatly to our quality of life. But as all of North Carolina grows, these sources of critical open space we all enjoy are under great pressure. Farm lands appraised in the same way as nearby sub-divisions of high demand suburban homes create large tax burdens for our working farmers. These high values can also make it difficult to pass along local family farms from generation to generation. As I listen to the many farmers I will represent in Southern Wake County, I hear their concern that soon the only crop they can afford to plant is houses. We are also running short of natural and park space. Often, the few open space requirements we have for development are waived and bought off. However, these “land banks” are getting near worthless as local land values continue to skyrocket. And if every acre is built on and paved, what space is left to buy for parks and natural areas? Additionally, Wake County’s best hope for a future large urban park, the Dix property, still is under threat of sale and/or development. We need to commit to supporting our local farms and working farmers, putting teeth into our preservation of nearby open spaces for parks and natural preserves, and protecting all of the Dix property for a future as a world class destination park.

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Thank You

As private citizen who felt the duty to step forward and serve his community, I understand and appreciate what it takes to become a candidate for the NC House. I would like to thank Al Swanstrom, the Democratic Party nominee for NC House 36, for stepping up to the challenge of representing his community in our General Assembly. Al Swanstrom worked very hard during the recent Cary elections of Erv Portman and Harold Weinbrecht. Recently retired from IBM, he realized he had the time and commitment to represent the voters in his Cary and Apex district. Join me in thanking Al Swanstrom at his campaign kick-off, Thursday, April 3rd, 7:00 PM at 101 Fern Bluff Way in Cary. More information at Al’s website: AlSwanstrom.com. Thanks, Al!

On Tuesday, February 12^th, joined by family, friends and supporters at the Wake County Board of Elections, I filed as a candidate for the North Carolina House of Representatives.

Although I have been working hard for over a year on this 2008 campaign, this is an exhilarating milestone. Now, with less than 9 months to the election in November, the pace picks up even more.

This year, there are exciting campaigns and candidates up and down the ticket for this historic election. That includes our local, grassroots campaign here in Wake County that has state-wide impact on our North Carolina General Assembly.

Please commit to help our campaign right now with either a generous campaign donation or with your valuable time. I need your help to win this tough race and I am asking you for it now.

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March Art Gallery Fundraiser

Let's celebrate spring together and raise funds to support our grassroots campaign. Enjoy good food & drink, good company, and great art with fellow supporters. You deserve to be part of this progressive campaign to move North Carolina forward.

So please stop by the Lee Hansley Art Gallery, 225 Glenwood Ave, Raleigh on Thursday, March 27th from 5:30-7:00 PM. Suggested Admission: $25 and Sponsorships available: $100 Bronze, $250 Silver, $500 Gold, $1000 Platinum.

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Issue: Diversity

Our world, our country, our state, and our local communities are a vast mix of different people.

From comfortably rich to desperately poor; from black, white, and every shade of brown in between; from well-educated to totally illiterate; from robustly healthy to terminally ill; from young with innocence to old with wisdom; from devoutly religious across a vast sea of faiths to completely non-religious; remotely rural to crowded urban; male and female, straight and gay in a range of gender identity and sexual orientation; political activists on the right or left to the politically apathetic and disaffected.

Regardless of where a person is on any of these spectrums, they deserve respect, opportunity, and equal treatment under our laws. Additionally, it is important to expose ourselves to people who are not like us. When we do, we often find there is much we have in common with our fellow human beings.

I look forward to representing the wide diversity of people in District 37 and to meeting as many of them as possible during this campaign.

March Afternoon Door Knocking and Pizza Party

Many of us are just not “morning people”. If you like to sleep in on the weekend, you will be glad to know that our next major door knocking event is a Saturday afternoon, March 1st at 2:00 PM.

We will meet at Campaign HQ (Ed’s House) 800 Oldwyck Dr, Fuquay Varina. Training and pairing up with experienced canvassers is provided for new volunteers. As always, other Democratic Candidates are welcome to join us and provide literature.

After knocking on doors, we will meet back at Rudino’s Pizza, 1436 North Main Street in Fuquay Varina to celebrate.

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Thank You

I would like to thank the thousands of people who came together at the Historic Thousands on Jones Street (HK on J) February 9th. The power of this coalition of over 70 organizations to bring a message of hope and action is meaningful and inspiring.

Our strength in unity shows we can work together for progress on issues as diverse as bringing our troops home from Iraq, fighting for workers and voters rights, ending poverty and racism, strengthening our schools, and providing health care for all.

I am proud to be a small part of this “movement, not a moment”