News & Observer | newsobserver.com |

Hopefuls say they're fit to be governor

Candidates for N.C.'s top job claim clean bills of health

- The Charlotte Observer

Published: Sun, Aug. 03, 2008 12:30AM

Modified Sun, Aug. 03, 2008 04:27AM

Bookmark and Share
email this story to a friend E-Mail print story Print
Text Size:

tool name

close
tool goes here

RALEIGH -- The three candidates for governor of North Carolina all say they are physically fit for the office.

Republican Pat McCrory, Libertarian Mike Munger and Democrat Bev Perdue are in excellent health and have only minor medical concerns, their campaigns said in response to a request for such information from The Charlotte Observer and The News & Observer.

Of the three, only Munger agreed to provide information in response to a request for the candidates' tax returns. He paid his federal income taxes in full and gave about 2 percent of his income to charity in 2006, according to his return for that year.

Bev Perdue, Democrat

Health: Perdue, 61, has been "in excellent health," according to a letter from Dr. Neil Bender of Jones County, her physician since 2001. She has high blood pressure, for which she has taken two prescription medications, and high cholesterol that she has treated with diet, exercise and weight loss, Bender wrote.

She smoked off and on from college until 2003, when she started working with teen anti-tobacco programs. "She never smoked a lot," spokesman David Kochman wrote in an e-mail message.

Finances: Perdue has held elected office continuously since 1987, the first 14 years as a state legislator. She has worked as a teacher, hospital administrator and consultant. Her salary as lieutenant governor is $123,198. On her state ethics form, she reports income of more than $5,000 from at least five other separate sources.

She reports interests of at least $10,000 in about 60 publicly traded companies and in four privately held companies, including a Craven County developer. Her husband, Bob Eaves, has interests in several other companies, including a convenience store chain. They report four separate liabilities of at least $10,000 to commercial banks. They own homes in Chapel Hill and New Bern.

MIKE MUNGER, LIBERTARIAN

Health: Munger, 49, described no serious health concerns. He has had high blood pressure, which he treats with prescription medication, since he was about 30. He reported a series of injuries -- mostly sports-related -- including sprained ankles, separated shoulders and a dislocated kneecap.

He said he had shoulder surgery in 2000 to repair a torn rotator cuff and to shave down part of a bone. "If it sounds painful, it is," he wrote in an e-mail message.

Finances: The only candidate to provide a tax return, Munger and his wife, Donna, reported $254,000 in combined taxable income in 2006. Their federal tax was $67,000, though they overpaid in both 2005 and 2006 and applied $8,000 to their 2007 tax bill. They reported giving $6,000 to charity.

Munger is a Duke University political scientist. His wife is a government lawyer. Their income also includes book royalties, speaking fees and logging income from property in Chatham County. On his ethics form, he reported no other business holdings of $10,000 or more. They own a house in Raleigh.

PAT MCCRORY, REPUBLICAN

Health: McCrory, 51, has been "consistently in excellent health," according to a letter from Dr. Robert Heyer of Charlotte, his physician since 1996. McCrory had successful knee surgery in 1996. "He has normal blood pressure and no evidence of cardiovascular disease," Heyer wrote.

Despite repeated questions, McCrory's campaign would not say with certainty whether he is taking any prescription medications or has taken any recently.

Spokeswoman Amy Auth said he was not, "to my knowledge."

Finances: McCrory worked at Duke Energy for 29 years before leaving to run for governor. He held several managerial positions and never disclosed how much he made. On his state ethics form, he reports his mayoral salary as the only other income of more than $5,000 for him or his wife, Ann. The salary is almost $40,000 this year.

He reported his Charlotte home as his only property. He reported no business holdings of $10,000 or more, but the ethics form does not require mutual fund holdings.

Related Content

The newspapers requested health and financial records --none of which must be revealed under state law -- to give more information to voters, to clear up any questions about the candidates' backgrounds and to measure their level of transparency.

It is common for presidential candidates to provide such information but not for statewide candidates to do so.

Public wants to know

"Increasingly, it's something that the public has an expectation of wanting to know for certain offices. I would say the governor's office falls into that," said Bob Phillips, executive director of Common Cause North Carolina, a Raleigh group that advocates government transparency.

"Yet," Phillips added, "it's a balancing act, too, with privacy concerns."

John Thompson, executive director of the N.C. Center for Voter Education in Raleigh, said candidates should not have to disclose medical information because their health can change at any time. But tax returns, he said, make a candidate "more three-dimensional."

"I just would want to make sure that they paid their taxes, just like I have to," Thompson said.

John Hood, president of the conservative John Locke Foundation in Raleigh, said having to disclose financial records could deter some qualified candidates. The public has a more compelling case to see health information, he said.

"The candidate is seeking an office with a fixed term," Hood said, "and it is reasonable for the voters to know if there are any health reasons that might necessitate a governor leaving before the end of a term."

McCrory's campaign initially declined to provide any health or tax records.

"It's personal, not public information, and we are fully complying with all disclosure requirements," spokeswoman Amy Auth said. McCrory later provided a short doctor's letter.

Perdue's campaign said the state's ethics form is sufficient to describe her financial situation. She provided a one-page doctor's letter about her health.

Last month, in separate speeches to the N.C. Press Association, McCrory and Perdue described themselves as champions of open government.

"I have a record of being extremely open and transparent," McCrory said.

Perdue promised that she would make North Carolina "known as the state with open, accessible government."

The two newspapers have also requested health and financial records from the candidates for U.S. Senate.

Get it all with convenient home delivery of The News & Observer.

No comments have been posted for this story. Log in to be the first to comment.
 

 

The News & Observer is pleased to be able to offer its users the opportunity to make comments and hold conversations online. However, the interactive nature of the internet makes it impracticable for our staff to monitor each and every posting.

Since The News & Observer does not control user submitted statements, we cannot promise that readers will not occasionally find offensive or inaccurate comments posted on our website. In addition, we remind anyone interested in making an online comment that responsibility for statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not The News and Observer.

If you find a comment offensive, clicking on the exclamation icon will flag the comment for review by the administrators, we are counting on the good judgment of all our readers to help us.