Now I won't have to vote Republican ....

by: Ed Tracey

Sun Sep 19, 2010 at 15:27:35 PM EDT

 OK, it should be stated: I'm from a suburban Long Island, NY family that was traditionally GOP (with my siblings split on party registration today). And in my youth, I was a ticket-splitter since (a) the New York State GOP still had moderates then and (b) the New York State Democratic leadership often gave us lackluster, machine candidates - which, come to think of it: they still do (though less often).

 So it's not that I am someone who boasts of 'never having voted Republican' before. And truth be told: I wouldn't mind a return to a day when I could switch to being a registered Independent and being able to have a choice in a general election. But until then: since probably the mid-1980's (when I relocated to the Granite State) I had not voted for a Republican.

 But I did so in 2008 ... and I was afraid I would have to once more (more after the jump)

 Anyway, that race was carried by one Bill Sharp - who was more maverick than John McCain ever pretended to be - and who won (in part) due to the old straight-ticket voting choice, which normally worked against us in the past. Thus I wrote a diary about that, allowing that - while "Sharp may work out fine" as a Valley News editorial wrote - that we as Democrats should follow-through on our campaign pledge to eliminate straight-ticket voting.

 And once in power, NH Democrats did just that: even though we would have benefited a second time (2008) from it. (Good-on-you, elected officials). And apart from an additional observation - I thought that was the end of my dealings with Mr. Sharp. After all, a register of deeds isn't something I have the time to worry about.

 But months later in September, 2007: he must have Googled his name because I received an e-mail from him. And ..... it wasn't pretty.

 Now, in part it may have been because he mistook me for someone else ("I think you played bass drum in the Lyme Town Band") and that individual may have been a journalist .... because he was imploring me to "straighten out the record" - which I'm not in a position to do.

 But, OK: it would have been one thing if he had written, "I know my press hasn't been good - but if you give me a chance, you'll see that I have done X, Y and Z". In other words, "you've got me all wrong". But he went further ..... well, much further .... written in an angry tone of voice, making fun of my last name and concluding, "you owe it to Me" to straighten this out .......

 I wrote him a very gentle reply which - in hindsight - must have been because I was afraid of what might follow. I've only been to one Lebanon Democratic meet-up since, because he was always at those. That one time (several weeks ago) he walked up to shake my hand, read my name tag and asked "Hmmm .... how do I know you?" I mumbled something about how I get around, and begged-off before he could recall.

 Suffice it to say, that communiqué is not something any elected official in a democracy should send to a constituent. And so I wound up voting for the GOP candidate Lynn Wheeler who lost a close election in 2008. Oh well, so I thought I would have to vote GOP again this November.

But as it turns out ... I won't have to, after all. Kelley Monahan defeated Sharp in the Democratic primary this past Tuesday.

Even this past Saturday's editorial in the Valley News was of the "Hey, we'll miss the guy" variety. And that's where I'll leave it; hopefully his work in that office was positive. And if anything wasn't: Kelley Monahan will have the chance to make it better.