Charlotte Observer: “Like most North Carolina Democrats, Anderson Clayton was disheartened after the 2022 midterms.
In her native Person County, where she serves as the county party chair, too many rural voters just couldn’t see a Democrat they were willing to vote for, even at the local level.
Seeing the North Carolina Democratic Party struggle once again to make inroads with rural communities is what cemented her decision to run for state party chair.
“I was like, wow, I have a lot of work to do. We all have so much work to do in rural communities,” Clayton told me. “And the fact that people don’t want to start that work tomorrow is why I decided I need to be in this race.” Clayton, 25, is arguably the most formidable challenger to Bobbie Richardson, a former state representative who became the party’s first Black chair in 2021. The race is a clash between old and new, between the party establishment and the folks on the ground.”