Cleetus Beaverton Announces His Campaign for Lieutenant Governor

Standing in front of two pickup trucks, a folding table of barbecue, and what campaign volunteers described as “more flags than strictly necessary,” Cleetus Beaverton formally entered the race Saturday with a promise to bring “plain talk and proper judgment” back to Raleigh.

Beaverton told a crowd of friends, cousins, small-business owners, and one dog in a campaign T-shirt that he had not planned to seek office. “I did not wake up wantin’ a title,” he said. “I woke up wantin’ somebody to explain why a normal person needs a password, a security question, and a confirmation email just to pay a water bill. That question took me directly into public service.”

The candidate described himself as a regular North Carolinian who has spent too long watching “the folks in charge explain why nothing can be done.” His first speech promised fair prices, stronger local businesses, and a state government that “can tell the difference between a hard problem and a bunch of people overthinkin’.”

“Folks say they want leaders who listen. I do listen. I just don’t always accept the explanation.”

Cleetus Beaverton, campaign kickoff remarks

Much of Beaverton’s platform is still taking shape, though he repeatedly returned to what he called “unaccountable systems.” In one breath, he used the phrase to describe self-checkout kiosks, state procurement websites, and “the general way schools have started emailing everybody.” In another, he said people have a right to ask who benefits when public business becomes too complicated for “a man eatin’ a biscuit in a parking lot” to understand.

He pledged to create a “Parents and Taxpayers’ Right to Know” page where North Carolinians could submit concerns about public programs, classroom materials, county offices, or organizations that “do not pass the smell test.” Beaverton said the idea was not about punishing anyone. “It is about sunlight,” he said. “And if somebody is scared of sunlight, I reckon that tells you somethin’.”

Asked whether he fully understood the constitutional responsibilities of the lieutenant governor’s office, Beaverton did not appear troubled by the question. “That is why I have people,” he said. “What I bring is judgment. And I have been right smart at judging a situation since before some of these fellas had their first business card.”

As the event ended, volunteers handed attendees pocket-sized cards titled Things I Have Noticed, inviting them to write down questions, concerns, or “patterns that maybe somebody ought to look at.” The Beaverton campaign said a public response feature, Ask Cleetus, would be announced later this summer.

Beaverton climbed into his truck shortly after 4 p.m., waved through the open window, and left beneath a banner that read: Because Somebody Had To.