Republican Caucus Nominates Daughtry for Speaker Post

The House is split 61-59 in favor of Republicans, according to election results released Friday after a final recount of votes in contested elections in four counties.

House Minority Leader Leo Daughtry, R-Johnston, defeated Rep. Connie Wilson, R-Mecklenburg, and Rep. Cary Allred, R-Alamance, to win the nomination for House speaker, the chamber's highest leadership position. Daughtry likely will face current House Speaker Jim Black, D-Mecklenburg, who has said he will seek re-election.

Rep. Richard Morgan, R-Moore, a former House minority leader and one of Daughtry's biggest critics in the GOP, said he plans to run against the caucus nominee in January as a bipartisan candidate, according to the Associated Press.

"The caucus nominee ... can't pull this off," he stated. "The work begins today to find a consensus candidate."

Rep. Joni Bowie, R-Guilford, won the Republican nomination for speaker pro tem, defeating Rep. Michael Decker, R-Forsyth.

The speaker of the House and the speaker pro tem must be elected by the entire House, while party leaders -- majority leader and majority whip -- only need approval from the caucus.

Rep. Joe Kiser, R-Catawba, who ran unopposed, was elected majority leader. Rep. Trudi Walend, R-Buncombe, defeated Rep. Mitchell Gillepsie, R-Burke, for the majority whip position.

But some Democrats say splinters in the Republican camp could lead to the GOP not winning the speakership despite holding a majority in the chamber.

"All it would take would be 61 votes for (Daughtry)," said House Majority Whip Rep. Beverly Earle, D-Mecklenburg. "But I don't think he has those votes. ... We have heard that they are splintered and divided over there. That certainly gives (Black) an opportunity to do something."

But Kiser said he is confident that party bickering will not prevent Daughtry from being speaker as some Democrats have asserted. "That's wishful thinking on (the Democrats') part," he said. "We have 61 Republicans now and we'll have 61 Republicans on January 29."

Rep. Ed McMahan, R-Mecklenburg, who said he originally intended to run for the speaker position but threw his support behind Daughtry, said the minority leader is the best chance to unite the Republican Party. "I'm confident that we'll pull all 61 Republicans," he said. "I also think that we'll pull some Democrats."

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.