Holmes pushes anti-gay message

Eugene Holmes, who is running for mayor of Kings Mountain, bluntly states that he doesn’t want the job. “I don’t want to be mayor no more than I want to fly,” said Holmes, who on the ballot lists his first name as “Sherlock,” a reference to the fictional detective.



He also concedes that he has little idea how much support he will be able to generate by Election Day on Nov. 3



“I don’t know about my chances in this thing,” said Holmes, who is making his first fully realized run for public office. “I’m a newcomer -- and I don’t give one hoot about politicians.”



What motivates Holmes to be in the public eye – if not public office – is his vocal and unbending rejection of the so-called homosexual lifestyle.



“In my administration I would do just like Mrs. Davis did in Kentucky,” said Holmes, referring to Kim Davis, the Rowan County, Ky., clerk of court who gained national media attention earlier this month by defying a federal court order in not issuing same-sex marriage licenses following a U.S. Supreme Court decision that effectively legalized gay marriage. (The City of Kings Mountain does not issue marriage licenses.)



Holmes’ views about homosexuality would likely be described as more extreme than those of Davis, who was held in contempt of court and jailed for five days for her actions.



“If you elect me, I’ll uphold the law of the state of North Carolina,” said Holmes, a 77-year-old Korean War veteran who makes a living by selling various wares at area flea markets. I would get the D.A. to swear out a warrant on any man who says he’s gay. Sodomy is a crime, a felony in the state of North Carolina.”



“What’s wrong with eradicating homosexuals? We should jail them, throw them all in jail!” said Holmes, who plans to participate in a Meet the Candidates forum at the Kings Mountain Woman’s Club this Saturday.



Holmes, who said he is a lifelong member of the Church of God, said he also would like to see alcohol, divorce and all immigration into the United States be made illegal.



When it comes to the economic outlook for Kings Mountain, candidate Holmes has bleak predictions.



“(Economic development here) doesn’t matter because Wall Street is going to blow up next week,” Holmes said, adding that Sunday, Sept. 13, was a “Blood Moon.” Holmes declined to fully explain the omen except to say he knew that something drastic would be visited upon the entire world in the coming weeks.



Holmes talks freely about his past, which has included run-ins with law enforcement, a prison sentence he received for a theft conviction and pending charges that include disorderly conduct and second degree trespassing related to an incident at a Newton flea market in July.



In 1985, he was sentenced to 10 years for larceny of more than $200. He served about four and a half years of that sentence and was released in April 1990. Holmes maintains his innocence in the larceny case.



In 2011, Holmes said he was ordered to receive 60-days of psychiatric treatment at Broughton Hospital, a state operated health care facility. That sentence stemmed from a case that involved Holmes being accused of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and a judge’s finding that he was in need of psychological evaluation and treatment.



Holmes says that during his stay at the Morganton hospital doctors diagnosed him as suffering from “religious hallucinations.”



Holmes concedes that he is not an expert on politics or governance.



“You would probably classify me as someone needing help,” he said. “I’m not a rocket scientist. But I do believe in holiness, in the Bible.



Holmes’ run for mayor isn’t his first shot at running for public office. Last year he filed to run for the 111th district of the N.C. House. Election officials rejected the filing due to Holmes 1990s felony conviction, which makes candidates ineligible for statewide office.



Nevertheless, he remains decidedly unimpressed with the very office he seeks to hold.



“The mayor doesn’t do much, in my eyes,” Holmes said. “He just collects a paycheck. But (incumbent mayor Rick Murphrey) hasn’t had any competition in the other elections and I wanted to see what I could do. If I’m elected, it will be we the people who run the show.”



At the ballot in November, Holmes faces Murphrey, former mayor Scott Neisler and Beauford Burton, a newcomer to politics.



(The Herald is publishing profiles of the four candidates in the race in the run-up to the election.)



Holmes has been married to his wife Sue for 53 years. The couple has two children. He says that in his free time he likes to pray and ask God for wisdom.



“I try to meet people and talk to them about salvation,” he said.



