I picked up Wednesday’s paper, eagerly seeking the results from Technician‘s mock election. I saw results I expected, such as Sen. Barack Obama having a slight lead and that the people with the most name recognition won. But one pie chart was surprising and very disconcerting.I saw that Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory had a 9% lead over Lt. Gov. Bev Perdue. I tend to sit on the right side of the political spectrum, but the idea the Republican candidate leading our state made me queasy.Though I supported Perdue during the democratic gubernatorial primaries, I favored Supreme Court Justice Bob Orr over all of the candidates. I have to be honest — I supported her because we share the same hometown of New Bern and she is a good friend of my boyfriend’s father. Then I realized that I was being an uninformed voter and did a little more research.After thinking a little more about the gubernatorial election, I realized it wasn’t completely stupid of me for wanting someone from east of I-95 to become governor. I think the last thing we need is more representation from the central part of the state. In N.C. politics, the eastern and western parts of the state are often ignored. I guess people in the past have tried to say something about that, considering people from Charlotte haven’t won a gubernatorial election in 30 years, according to the Charlotte Observer.As my research continued, I found that Perdue obviously has more experience. She is more educated than McCrory. Do we really want a governor who only has a bachelor’s degree from Catawba College? I’m no trying to trash Catawba, but as students, we should note that Perdue has a Ph. D. in education. McCrory has an honorary doctorate from Catawba, which must be a big deal considering it doesn’t offer real doctorates, according to ballotbox.governing.com.Also, almost all of his political experience has been at the local level.He has served on the Homeland Security Advisory Committee and founded the N.C. Metropolitan Coalition, but Perdue’s political experience towers over McCrory’s.First of all, Perdue has been serving as our lieutenant governor for the past eight years. Before that, she elected to the N.C. House and Senate.Perdue has also been a major part of helping North Carolina’s economy, such as supporting pay raises for teachers and leading the state’s efforts during the Defense Department’s Base Realignment and Closure process, which protected our $18 billion economy.She also guarantees that if offshore drilling does happen off North Carolina’s coast, its people will get a fair share of the profits and not just the oil companies.Perdue also cares about families, as she wants to toughen anti-gang laws, wants to enact harsher penalties for drug and gun crimes and supported Jessica’s Law.Perdue has received many endorsements, some of which are from the N.C. Association of Educators, the National Association of Social Workers, the N.C. Academy of Trial Lawyers, The N.C. Trooper’s Association, the N.C. Sheriff Police alliance and even the Black Political Caucus of Charlotte-Mecklenburg, McCrory’s turf!Pat McCrory is endorsed by 2 former governors and 4 newspapers (and maybe some others), including President George W. Bush.McCrory is the only gubernatorial candidate that is campaigning with Bush. One question: why would you WANT the support of Bush? Whether you support Bush or not, wouldn’t campaigning with the most unpopular president ever be a  poor choice on his behalf? Could it mean that he would be the real McBush? Hopefully, we will not have to find out.It’s not that I only favor people and things from the eastern part of the state. For instance, I can’t stand Nicholas Sparks’ books or movies.Neither candidate is perfect, as is the case in all elections, and both have misleading ads. I agree with Perdue on the issues that are most important to me: education, off-shore drilling, protection of families and the economy. I do not have the confidence to say that McCrory has the experience, the drive or the vision to lead the great state of North Carolina.You can bet that I when I send in my absentee ballot, it’ll have a big, bold check next to Perdue’s name and not next to that John Edwards look-alike. The last thing we need is more Raleigh-gaggers and Charlotte-ans in the the state governmentSend Jane your thoughts on North Carolina’s gubernatorial race to [email protected].