Candidate Profiles: Warren Daniel (N.C. Senate District 46)

Full name: Warren Daniel

Age: 55

Education: Freedom High School, 1987; B. S. from the United States Military Academy, 1991; J.D. from UNC Law, 2000

Military service: During military service, I served on active duty in the U.S. Army from 1991 to1997, achieving the rank of Captain.

Employment: I have worked as a general practice attorney at the Daniel Law Firm, P.A. since 2000. I have also served in the NC Senate since 2011.

Residence: I grew up in Morganton and moved back after leaving active duty military service and graduating from law school. Lydia and I returned to Morganton in 2000 to live and raise our family.

Why are you seeking election? I’m seeking reelection to the State Senate to continue giving a voice to the people of Buncombe, Burke and McDowell counties, and to stand up and fight for them in Raleigh on issues that are important to western NC.

If elected, what will be your primary focus during your first six months in office? My primary focus will always be keeping North Carolina a great place to live, work and raise a family. I will continue to find ways to bring good jobs to western NC, and help North Carolinians deal with rising prices on everyday goods, like cutting taxes, raising the standard deduction and child tax credit so people can keep more of their hard-earned money. I will also prioritize keeping our communities safe by ensuring our law enforcement officers get the funding they need and our schools have resource officers. Another key issue I will be working on is the Catawba River Basin IBT to protect the water resources of our region.

If elected as a public servant, what legacy do you hope to achieve during your tenure in office? I’m not concerned about what legacy I have; my only goal is to continue to support policies that improve the quality of life for my constituents, making sure that our community is represented well in Raleigh and that my constituents know they have someone they can count on.

What is your stance on NC Opportunity Scholarships? How do they help or hurt public education in the state? I support the Opportunity Scholarship program, a program that provides scholarships to families across the state to send their children to private schools if the local school isn’t meeting their needs. Each child is different, and it’s imperative we do everything we can to give them the best opportunity to succeed. Public schools receive about 40 cents of every state tax dollar. They will always be the primary source of K-12 education in our state, and I will continue to advocate for them to be well funded. Our children are our future, and when we help them succeed, we all succeed.

Housing, particularly for low- and middle-income Burke County residents, is in short supply. In what specific ways can state government help expand housing opportunities in Burke? I think we need to continue having conversations between the state legislature and our local partners about zoning reform and general deregulation to encourage development in our Communities. I also support programs like the NC Housing Finance Agency that provides low-cost, down-payment assistance to qualified home buyers.

Any additional comments or remarks: It has been an honor to represent the people of western North Carolina and to help find ways to solve the problems they care about. I have worked diligently with legislative and local leaders to bring key funding to Burke and surrounding counties to improve our universities, community colleges, state parks, and other state and local facilities and infrastructure. I am also honored to have been able to play a key role with Representative Blackwell in obtaining funding for the construction and establishment of the Western NC School of Science and Mathematics in Morganton – now in its second year of operation – which will be an educational and economic game changer for western NC.