2010 Election and this IRV Ballot for NC Appeals Court

This post was inspired by a question posted on a Yahoo! Group I am a member of, and it is as follows:

I have been studying the sample ballot for this election... and for some judges races there are 1st , 2nd and 3rd choices.... it is not as it seems..  read the fine print... The first choice is your first choice.... it should also be your 2nd and 3rd choice...  I heard on the radio today that if your first choice does not get over 50% of the vote then it is an automatic run off to your 2nd and 3rd choices.... Someone please correct me it I have assessed this incorrectly.. Thanks Name Redacted

Here is my answer, which I've swiped to post here because I am sure that many others have the same question...

If you do that, your votes will only be counted once. 

IRV is (I believe) being conducted in violation of both North Carolina and Federal Election Law...but when has that ever stopped the people who are determined to wreck our political system? 

I posted about the IRV in September. [Click Here to see it]

There is almost nothing on the various county websites that have been posted to help us identify who the conservative judges are. 

Here is a portion from a blog in New Bern [Link to Blog] that has identified some conservative judges:

IRV (Instant Runoff Voting Procedure

You may also CLICK HERE to visit the NC Board of Elections pdf to view an example of IRV. Example on the lower half of page two of the document, red text:  IRV -- Instant Runoff Voting.

Reason for IRV this election:

NC Court of Appeals Judge Wynn was elevated to the 4th U.S. Circuit Court o Appeals. Under the NC Constitution, the vacant office must be filled by an election this November. Thirteen candidates are running for the office. Too late to hold a primary, under NC law, this election will use an Instant Runoff Voting method. Voters indicate who they prefer among the candidates at the "instant" they vote, by ranking as many as three choices 1, 2, and 3. If your 1st choice loses, your 2nd or 3rd choice could determine who wins.

Court of Appeals Judge (IRV Selection)
(Wynn Seat)

Choice 1: J. Douglas McCullough
Choice 2: Daniel Garner
Choice 3: Jewel Ann Farlow

Important:  You may rank less than three candidates by leaving columns blank. If you select the same candidate in more than one column, your vote for that candidate will count only once.

It is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED that you also CLICK HERE to view an example of what the Court of Appeals Judge IRV ballot will look like.

Judges increasingly determine what constraints will be placed upon our liberty and rights as Americans. You MUST vote for individual judges, a party line vote does NOT include judges. We urge you to vote for conservative judges who can help restore our adherence to the Constitution and preserve our Republic through case law and a strong commitment to States Rights.

 And, I found a list on the Scrutiny Hooligans blog...they are recommending Hammer, Middleton and Thigpen...so I think we can safely mark those off our list from the start.  They also posted a list of the judges with their voter registration listed. There are only 3 Republicans on the ballot: Dillon, Garner and McCullough. That might be a good starting point from which to begin your investigations.

I have compiled a list below, and just click on the links below to visit their websites or facebook pages to find out more about them and make your own determination in how you should rank them: 

Bloss, John (U) [website] [facebook]

Casteen, John Wesley (U) [website] [facebook]

Dillon, Robert Christpopher (R) [website] [facebook]

Farlow, Jewel Ann (U) [website] [ no known facebook page]

Garner, Daniel (R) [website] [facebook]

Hammer, Stanley (D)* progressive [website] [facebook]

Klass, Mark (D) [website] [facebook]

Mccullough, John Douglas (R) [website] [no known facebook page]

Middleton, Anne (D)* progressive [website] [facebook]

Payne, Harry (D) [website] [no known facebook page]

Sullivan, John (D) [no website] [no known facebook page]

Thigpen, Cressie (D)* progressive [website] [facebook]

Vesper, Pamela (U) [website] [facebook]

So there you have it, a nice big fat homework assignment.

My personal choices are:

#1 Douglas McCullough

#2 Daniel Garner

#3 Jewel Ann Farlow