Poll hints at potential challenge of powerful Senate leader Berger from within his party

Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger adjourns the N.C. Senate May 16, 2023 in Raleigh.

Triad residents began getting calls for a poll last week about a potential challenger in the 2024 elections to Senate leader Phil Berger. If the matchup described in the poll were to come to pass, it would be a rare threat to the reelection of one of the state’s most powerful politicians — from within his own party. That potential challenger is Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page, a Republican who recently spoke out against Berger over legislation to expand casinos across North Carolina. Page is currently running for lieutenant governor.

The group that requested the poll is known as the North Carolina Conservative Project. The pollster working for the organization wouldn’t tell The News & Observer the names of individuals involved, but said they’re people looking for someone to take on Berger and that they’re fans of Page. Asked about the poll Wednesday, Page told The News & Observer that it has given him a lot to think about and discuss with family over the Thanksgiving holiday and ahead of candidate filing that starts on Dec. 4. Both Page’s and the Bergers’ names loom large over Rockingham County and the Triad. Page, the sheriff since 1998, is well known, often appearing on Triad newscasts, and he served from 2010 to 2011 as president of the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association.

The Berger family is a political dynasty. Besides the Senate leader, who is serving his 13th term in office, his son and namesake served two terms as the county’s district attorney and is currently a state Supreme Court judge. His younger son, Kevin Berger, serves as Rockingham County commissioner. Berger and Page both live in Eden and have had a tumultuous relationship dating back years. The friction dates back to at least 2005, when Page didn’t endorse Berger’s son Phil Berger Jr. for district attorney. Then in 2014, when Berger Jr. ran for Congress, Page made headlines for not endorsing his own county’s district attorney. He then supported Craig Blitzer, the opponent of Berger Jr.’s chosen successor. Blitzer would go on to win that race but would later be forced to resign as district attorney for failure to discharge the duties of his office.

BUDGET STANDOFF OVER CASINOS

Most recently, Page pitted himself against Berger in one of the biggest fights this legislative session, on whether more casinos should be legalized in North Carolina.

Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page speaks during a press conference outside the N.C. Legislative Building Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2023. A group of local residents from Rockingham and Nash counties, two of the four counties that could host new casinos if the Republican proposal advances this session, spoke out against the plan during a press conference outside the Legislative Building, just hours before the House Republican Caucus planned to meet to discuss the idea.

This year, the state’s two-year budget was supposed to be passed by the end of June but was delayed until October due to internal GOP fights on casinos. Berger strongly pushed for the legalization of casinos as part of the budget. Under this proposal, Rockingham County would have likely hosted one of at least four potential new casinos. Meanwhile, House Republicans said they did not have the votes in their caucus to push casinos within the budget, leading to an impasse. Page spoke out often against this proposal, going to the legislature to rally against it and speaking during county meetings. During one of his visits to Raleigh, Page said county residents should be allowed to hold a referendum on proposed casino developments before lawmakers take further action, as previously reported by N&O.

Ultimately, the casino proposal fell through and the budget passed without its inclusion. But Berger, who has said casinos would bring revenue and jobs to rural areas, has suggested the proposal might be brought back during next year’s legislative session. Berger has also faced some pushback this year in Guilford County, which is in his district, regarding his support of the de-annexation of nearly 1,000 acres owned by developer David Couch from the town of Summerfield. The de-annexation proposal, filed in the legislature, did not pass after the town conceded to negotiating with Couch regarding his development, rather than losing land, various media outlets reported.

REPUBLICAN REACTION TO POTENTIAL PRIMARY

Diane Parnell, Rockingham GOP chair, said she had heard about the poll. She said any standoff would not be good considering Berger’s work in the district.

“Sen. Berger has been really good for Rockingham County,” she said, pointing to this year’s budget that included big-ticket earmarks for water and sewer infrastructure, as previously reported by The N&O. “If you take a look at the projects that he sent money to, it shows where his heart lies, and that is with the people of Rockingham County.” As for the casino standoff, Parnell said if people “took a good look exactly what was planned, then I think they might have a different view. It needed to be presented, I think in a different way, so that people understood it.” She added that she found it hard to believe that Page would consider running for Berger’s seat. “As far as I know, he’s still running for lieutenant governor,” she said. Indeed, on Monday, Republican donors Roy and Vanessa Carroll hosted an event at their home to raise money for Page’s campaign for lieutenant governor, according to an invitation obtained by The N&O.

Should there be a primary between Berger and Page, Parnell said county party leaders “have to maintain hands off until after a primary, and that’s certainly what we would do.”

PAGE FACES DECISION ON ELECTION

In the poll, asking 300 Republicans to choose between Page and Berger, Page came out 30 points ahead. However, the poll also showed that 30% didn’t know who they’d choose and 8% said someone else.

The N&O was shown a copy of the entirety of the poll, with the agreement that the pollster could not be named. The poll asked leading questions about Berger’s record, but the pollster said the results given to the newspaper were the responses prior to any messaging. Page said Wednesday he and his team had not conducted their own poll but that those numbers were “very impressive” and “it makes you feel like you’re making a difference.” Asked whether the poll results changed his plans, Page said, “whatever I decide that I’m gonna do, I want to do what’s in the best interest of the state of North Carolina and the people that I serve, our citizens.” He said that he had “looked at several options during the course of the past five months.”

The lieutenant governor’s seat is open as Republican Mark Robinson runs for governor. It has drawn a crowd of candidates, including Page and Rockingham County attorney Seth Woodall. Berger and Woodall’s law firms share office space. “Of course, I’ve been running for lieutenant governor and I think we’ve done very well and covered a lot of areas,” Page said, but “what brings you back to it, is where can I be the most effective and for the state, our citizens and for the people I serve, as I have as sheriff.” “As we go into the holidays, I’m gonna be with family and we have the opportunity to meet with a lot of our family and I’ll be meeting and having some conversation and decisions to make,” considering candidate filing starts Dec. 4, he said.

“After I get a little vacation and kind of relax, do a lot of thinking, I’ll be ready to make some decisions.”

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BY DANIELLE BATTAGLIA AND LUCIANA PEREZ URIBE NOVEMBER 27, 2023 5:00 AM