This will be the first time in at least a century that voters in Raleigh will choose their mayor and city council members in a presidential election year.
This means a huge increase in turnout in the municipal elections, which were held in odd years until 2022. It also means urban candidates are struggling to capture voters’ attention amid the clamor of the presidential race in the battleground state of North Carolina. . But amid the presidential noise, more than two dozen candidates are seeking seats on the eight-member council, which includes the mayor, two at-large members and five elected by districts.
The News & Observer editorial board has endorsed this Janet Cowel in the five-way race for mayor. We also support the re-election of the council member Jane Harrisonwhich faces no opposition in District D, which covers much of west Raleigh. Here are our picks in the other races:
Wholesale
In the race for the two at-large seats, the incumbents are Jonathan Melton and Stormie Forte. Also active are James Bledsoe, Joshua Bradley, Reeves Peeler and Robert Steele Jr. (Candidate Katie Pate, who is on the ballot, withdrew from the race in August citing medical reasons).
Bledsoe, 38, is a state employee and a U.S. Army veteran who served in Afghanistan. He wants to increase police pay but limit city spending in other areas. He would streamline the city’s building permit requirements to make building affordable housing easier.
Bradley, 50, is a hotel accountant and former Occupy Raleigh activist. He is critical of police shootings and supports non-police organizations’ responses to people in mental health crises.
Peeler, 38, a former community organizer who now works in banking, serves on the Raleigh Planning Commission. He believes the city should encourage affordable housing. He said he will “work hard to hold large corporate real estate developers accountable for paying their fair share to alleviate real estate taxes.”
Steele, 40, a property manager, has committed to making changes in Raleigh after his fiancée was killed in a mass shooting in Raleigh’s Hedingham neighborhood in 2022. He wants a citywide emergency alert system for violent crimes. He also wants to increase affordable housing and improve city leaders’ responsiveness to the public.
Melton, 38, of Southeast Raleigh, is a family law attorney. When he was first elected at large in 2019, he became the first openly LGBTQ person to win a citywide victory in Raleigh. He is a decisive and energetic councilor who attaches great importance to communication with residents. He has supported pay increases for public safety workers, revised zoning laws to allow for a greater variety of housing and expanded Raleigh’s transportation options. We recommend Jonathan Melton.
Forte, 53, a Raleigh native and attorney, was appointed to the county seat in 2020 and then won her at-large seat in 2022. She supports the city stepping up efforts to help the homeless and expanding bus service to accommodate more people Pull. riders. She has been a collegial member of the council and focused on results rather than disputes. We recommend the re-election of Stormie Forte.
District A (North Raleigh)
Mary Black, 29, brought a younger perspective and environmental concern to the City Council when she was elected in 2022. She advocated for the restoration of citizen advisory councils, more assistance for the homeless and the creation of the city’s African American Affairs Board.
Black is being challenged by Whitney Hill, a Web marketer who declined to give his age, and Mitchell Silver, 64, Raleigh’s former planning director. While Black has made contributions to the council, Silver offers depth of experience that would benefit the council as it guides the city’s growth.
Silver, who served as New York City parks commissioner after leaving Raleigh in 2014, is now a planning consultant in Raleigh. He would bring valuable expertise to the council, especially as the city prepares to create a new comprehensive plan that will guide growth for decades. We recommend Mitchell Silver.
District B (Northeast Raleigh)
Incumbent Megan Patton, 36, a former elementary school teacher, was one of four first-year council members elected in 2022. She says the work is more demanding than she expected and results are harder to achieve.
Still, Patton listened, learned and made progress. She works closely with district residents and has secured funding for Forestville Road Park.
Patton is being challenged by Jennifer McCollum, 51, a corporate account manager. She wants to increase the city’s public safety resources, but also wants to cut taxes “to get money back into citizens’ pockets.”
McCollum, a first-time candidate, said she wants the council to be more transparent and responsive to the public. “You can start talking and it doesn’t seem like they really care,” she said.
However, the incumbent in this district does listen and care. We recommend Megan Patton.
District C (Southeast Raleigh)
Corey Branch, a four-term incumbent in District C, previously announced his candidacy for mayor, leading to a flurry of candidates for what appeared to be an open seat. But Branch, 46, changed course and is now looking for another term to represent this southeast Raleigh district.
There are now seven candidates on the ballot in District C. The others are DeQuanta Copeland, 44, a community engagement coordinator for Wake County who ran for mayor in 2022; Tomara DeCosta, 46, manager of a clinical trials organization who opposes bus rapid transit projects and wants to cut what she sees as the city’s wasteful spending; Air Force veteran Jared Ollison, 49, is the former director of detention services for the Wake County Sheriff’s Office and now a State Capitol Police officer; Tolulope O. Omokaiye, 42, leader of a nonprofit youth education program; Portia W. Rochelle, 72, minister and retired state employee, and Daniel Grant-King, 25, special education teacher.
Starting in 2026, a primary election will limit the choices to two. But the number of candidates this year speaks to more than a gap in the process or Branch’s first step in running for mayor. It speaks to the feeling in the neighborhood that residents are not being heard.
Branch has been a capable council member and his knowledge of city government is valuable, but his many challengers indicate it is time for new leadership for Southeast Raleigh.
The most convincing candidate in this group is Ollison. He supports youth programs and proposes a more hands-on approach to serving the district than some of the more activist candidates.
When asked what he’s hearing from district residents, Ollison said, “They tell me they’re tired of the blight, the city’s inability to address the broken sidewalks. They worry about the cost of housing and gentrification.”
Ollison, who has a master’s degree in public policy and public administration, said, “There are a lot of things that are just ignored. If you are on the city council, you have an obligation to come out and understand what the needs are.”
These are simple talks about the neighborhood that is all too often overlooked. We recommend Jared Ollison.
District E (Central and Northwest Raleigh)
First-term incumbent Christina Jones has made a strong effort to reach her constituents. She has held 23 community meetings in two years. She has also paid attention to the needs of city workers and has tried to pay them more.
But Jones’ outreach to her council colleagues was not as effective. She brings an activist approach to a job that should be primarily about collaboration and compromise.
Jones’ opponent would bring a completely different style to his work. John Cerqueira, 45, has an MBA from UNC’s Kenan-Flagler Business School and advises organizations on how to manage change, a professional skill that would be useful for a council leading a growing city.
We recommend Johannes Cerqueira.
