With early voting in full swing and Election Day coming up on November 8, Chatham County voters are set to decide several key local races.
Bill Horner, Editor and Publisher of the Chatham County News + Record told 97.9 The Hill: “When you think about Chatham County, the growth, the change that’s coming, the economic development projects – on the County Commissioners, those candidates, those races are absolutely critical.”
The County Board of Commissioners has three spots up for election. District 3 pits Democrat David Delaney, a cybersecurity expert and attorney, against Republican Thomas Glendinning, a retired contractor, farmer, and business owner. Delaney told the Chatham News + Record he is running “to ensure we advance smart, strategic development, protect our environment, and promote equity for all county residence.” Glendinning told the Chatham News + Record he believes, “Chatham County right now needs the proper direction and dedication to American principals that I can offer.”
Running for Board of Commissioners District 4 is Republican Joe Godfrey, a safety supervisor for Siemens. He hopes to provide practical, real solutions to the problems facing our citizens. His opponent is educator Katie Kenlan. She is running to make sure development is done thoughtfully, to fund and support schools and community college, and to address climate change.
District 5 is the final Commissioner spot up for election in Chatham County. That race has incumbent Democrat Franklin Gomez Flores running for reelection. He says he’s running because it is important for that we all have equal and fair opportunities and no community falls behind. His opponent is Peyton Moody, owner of a propane company. He says he’s running to help sustain and improve our county in a positive way.
There are also three Chatham County School Board seats up for election this November. Jane Allen Wilson is the incumbent for School Board District 4 — she is running unopposed.
Chair of the Chatham County Commissioners Karen Howard said the school board races will be very important to the county. She told 97.9 The Hill that the school board races have grown “divisive, certainly through the pandemic.”
District 3, for example, has garnered a lot of attention and political spending. It has longtime incumbent Del Turner, who has been on the board since 2010, running for re-election. Turner has frequently affiliated with the Democratic party. She says she’s running to finish what she started — increase local subsidies for teachers, enhancing opportunities through the AVID program, and ensuring timely K-12 civics curriculum for all students. Her opponent is Jessica Winger, a CCS parent, yoga teacher, and substitute teacher who affiliates with the Republican party. She says she is running because she believes decisions by the board during COVID-19 caused ham to the students of CCS.
The District 5 Board of Education race includes Republican-affiliated Tim Moore who lists lack of academic excellence and the need for more parent supervision of curriculum as some of the reasons he’s running. His opponent is incumbent democrat affiliated Gary Leonard, who’s been elected previously in 2010, 2014, and 2018. He was a classroom teacher who retired in 2018. He feels his “experience as a teacher, coach, and athletic director give him the insight to work with administration and continue to move Chatham County School forward.”
Another marquee race on the Chatham County Ballot is for Chatham County Sheriff. Horner said, “We’ve got a race between the man who’s been the Sheriff for a term and half, and he’s running against his Republican challenger, Marcus Globushutz.” Incumbent democrat Mike Roberson is seeking reelection to the office he originally won in 2018. He has several years of law enforcement experience in addition to his time as Sherriff. Globuschutz, has served in various capacities for N.C. Department of Public Safety. During the campaign he has used his Facebook page to strongly criticize Roberson. Roberson told the News + Record he’s chosen not to respond to the charges made through social media because doing so on that platform is “beneath the office.”
With these and other important races on the ballot, the expectation is that there will be lots of Chatham county residents making it to the polls this midterm election. Howard said, “Chatham is a community that is very vested in that vote, and I think we will see a lot of people going out to early vote even though this is a non-presidential year.”
Early voting sites in Chatham County include: Chatham County Agricultural & Conference Center in Pittsboro; the Central Carolina Community College Chatham Health Science Center; Paul Braxton Gym on 3rd Ave. in Siler City; Goldston Town Hall; and the New Hope Baptist Church. Eligible Chatham County residence can one-stop register and vote at any of these locations through November 5.
All candidate quotations and policy positions for this article came from the Chatham News + Record. For more coverage of Chatham County elections visit the newspaper’s website, where election coverage is unlocked for all readers.
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