On Tuesday, November 7th I will be proudly voting a straight Democratic Party ticket. This year I think the South Carolina Democratic Party and the Greenville County Democrats have done an outstanding job of fielding qualified candidates in every race. In the past the Democratic field has been thin and in some cases our party has attracted fringe candidates simply because no one else wanted to even try to defeat or unseat a Republican candidate in South Carolina. This year however we are blessed with a long list of solid candidates who bring experience, expertise and passion to the table.

As Paul Krugman writes in today's New York Times, "The fact is that this is a one-letter election. D or R, that's all that matters." Krugman goes on to say that given the Republicans ability to keep their members in line even a narrow margin of victory nationally will give President Bush a free hand but "If they lose control of either house, the G.O.P. juggernaut will come to a shuddering halt." Nothing would make me happier. Electing Democrats this fall will allow for real Congressional oversight for the first time in six years and allow South Carolina to break the deadlock on power and infuse new energy and ideas into our state legislature.

Any Republican who claims to be an independent thinker is lying. Congressman Bob Inglis made just that claim in a recent edition of The Greenville News. Inglis claims his second stint in Congress allowed him to develop an independent streak. As an example Inglis cites an encounter with the president in which he told Bush that he should stop using the phrase 'stay the course' in reference to the Iraq war. A few days later, Bush called out to Inglis after a speech and told him that he had changed his rhetoric in response to his suggestion. Well whoop-de-do! That's just amazing and what a brave man Inglis was to speak up like that! If you want to continue this blind leading the blind ideology straight into hell then vote Republican and ensure that the Iraq war will continue unabated, more of our soldiers will be maimed and killed, our national deficit will continue to rise and millions more will be added to the rolls of the uninsured. If you want thoughtful leadership and a change in course vote for Bill Griffith, find out more about Griff by clicking on www.votegriff.com

We face the same situation here in South Carolina, a failure of leadership and a stuck in the mud status quo. The only way out is to change the make up of our elected officials and throw the bums out. At a recent event for state senate candidate Frank Eppes, one of the hosts said that opposition to the School Choice/voucher plan wasn't a Democratic or Republican issue it was an issue that affects our children and thus the future of our state. In order to kill the School Choice/voucher program once and for all we MUST elect candidates that oppose siphoning off money from public education to fund private school tuition. SC State Senate District 5 candidate Frank Eppes along with Education Superintendent candidate Jim Rex are fore square against this plan as are most if not all of the rest of the South Carolina Democratic Party candidates. In contrast, GOP Superintendent for Education candidate and faithful GOP operative Karen Floyd has accepted tens of thousands of dollars from school voucher supporters and recently headlined a benefit paid for by this special interest group.

The Greenville County auditor's race is a classic example of when political party shouldn't matter but it has proven a deciding factor in the past. Rather than elect Mary Strom who has been with the Auditor's office since 1994 and served as acting Auditor from 2001 to 2203 the GOP Party faithful chose to elect an elderly, inexperienced candidate simply because there was an R by his name. This year, Mary Strom is running against one of the most demagogic like Republicans imaginable, Scott Case. There's no question that Mary's the most experienced and best qualified candidate but once again I fear politics will rule the day.

Sometimes the differences are so stark it seems like a no-brainer but once again party affiliation takes precedence over common sense. Emile DeFelice is an organic pig farmer who wants to be elected South Carolina Commissioner of Agriculture. He wants to create a better distribution system for farmers to enable them to supply locally grown products to grocery stores and farmers markets across the state. The current percentage of state grown products distributed in South Carolina is about 5%. Emile DeFelice is a graduate of Emory University and the University of South Carolina and holds degrees in philosophy, French and government. He's on the cutting edge of a very competitive field and he's a heck of a nice guy to boot. You can meet Emile in person at the Greenville County Democratic Party breakfast on October 21st call 232-5531 for details or click on http://www.e4ag.com/home/ for information on Emile's campaign.

A vote for light weight, figure heads like Thomas Ravenel and Andre Bauer is just plain ignorant. Certainly Andre has proven that an impetuous child-like candidate can sit in the Lt. Governor's office and not cause any measurable harm to our state but if you have any respect for the office that Nick Theodore and others held in the past with such grace please don't vote for this lunk head. Ravenel is just looking to build up his name recognition for his next political race and he is as critics have labeled him a dilettante. Our state's financial future and credit rating is too important to entrust it to inexperienced, political climbers like Ravenel. In this case your choices are clear, Robert Barber has run a polished campaign for Lt. Governor. He's a former member of the State House of Representatives, currently owns and manages a restaurant, after serving in the ministry and as a practicing attorney. Contrast his record of accomplishment with Bauer's sneaky real estate deals and flouting of the law. In the race for State Treasurer, Grady Patterson is the Democratic incumbent and the voice of reason when it comes to commerce. His record of accomplishment and steady leadership speaks for itself.

If you don't know who your local candidates are or what the positions are of particular candidates, take some time to find out. Click on www.scdp.org for a complete list of Democratic Party candidates.