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For immediate release.
Sep. 22, 2006
Contact: Bryan Warner, N.C. Center for Voter Education, 877-258-6837 (toll free)

Order on the Net: Voters Can 'Judge for Yourself' with New Online Radio Show

RALEIGH - North Carolina's judicial elections have entered the new frontier of podcasting, in hopes of connecting Tar Heel voters with the often little-known candidates running for the state's highest courts.

The nonpartisan N.C. Center for Voter Education is launching “Judge for Yourself,” a special twelve-part series featuring exclusive interviews with candidates running in the Nov. 7 election for the N.C. Supreme Court and N.C. Court of Appeals.

Voters across the state will be able to download installments for free via the N.C. Center for Voter Education's new NCCVE Podcasts, available at www.ncvotered.com or through iTunes.

And starting Monday, Sept. 25, “Judge for Yourself” will air in the Raleigh-Durham market on 570-AM WDOX and 1180-AM WYRN each Monday and Wednesday morning at 7:30 a.m. New and archived episodes will also be available online at www.stategovernmentradio.com.

The program addresses concerns held by nine out of ten Tar Heel voters about a lack of information on judicial candidates, according to studies commissioned by the N.C. Center for Voter Education.

The research also revealed that the No. 1 reason potential North Carolina voters don't cast a ballot is because they lack the facts needed to have confidence in their vote.

Chris Heagarty, executive director of the N.C. Center for Voter Education, will host “Judge for Yourself” and interview candidates one-on-one, giving voters an in-depth look at these races that they won't find anywhere else.

Heagarty points out that with no election for the White House, governor's mansion or U.S. Senate, the races for the N.C. Supreme Court and N.C. Court of Appeals are the only statewide contests on North Carolina’s ballot this year.

He hopes “Judge for Yourself” will raise voter awareness about these judicial elections and move people to the polls on Nov. 7.

“Folks want to vote in these races, but they want to cast an informed ballot," says Heagarty. "If we can help put the candidates out in front of the public, and give the candidates a forum to share their qualifications and background, then voters can decide for themselves who they'll support, with good information to back it up.”

“Judge for Yourself” supplements North Carolina’s official judicial voter guide. Produced by the State Board of Elections, that guide will be mailed to voters throughout the state in the weeks before Election Day.

The N.C. Center for Voter Education is a Raleigh-based nonprofit and nonpartisan organization dedicated to improving the quality of elections in North Carolina through research and education.

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