The Filing Period for 2023 Local Elections Is Now Finished. Who Is Running?

The deadline for candidates to file for 2023 local elections across North Carolina has now passed. As of 12 p.m. on Friday, the ballots are now set for the fall municipal cycle.

Over the course of two weeks, communities in Orange, Chatham and Durham counties saw a mix of residents launch campaigns or enter their names for consideration for critical leadership roles in local government. New mayors, town councils, and school board representatives will be chosen by voters in November — and below are the finalized lists.

What Positions Are On The Ballot?

Since it is a municipal election cycle, there are several elected roles for Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Hillsborough and Pittsboro on the ballot this fall. In nearly every race, some incumbents have already announced they will not run again or will be seeking new roles, which opens up seats to add new members.

Here is the full list of races Chapelboro will be tracking in Orange, Durham and Chatham counties this fall:

Chapel Hill Mayor
Chapel Hill Town Council (4 seats available)
Carrboro Mayor (Open)
Carrboro Town Council (3 seats available)
Hillsborough Mayor (Open)
Hillsborough Board of Commissioners (3 seats available)
Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education (4 seats available)
Pittsboro Mayor (Open)
Pittsboro Board of Commissioners (3 seats available)
City of Durham Mayor (Open)
Durham City Council (3 At-Large Seats)

What Candidates Are On The Ballot?

Many of the local races saw a variety of community members enter, while a handful of races drew just one. The mayoral races in Carrboro, Hillsborough and Pittsboro will be unopposed — as three current elected officials will make the jump to a new role with no competition. Meanwhile, Chapel Hill will also see a new face at mayor and it will be one of two current town council members. The Chapel Hill Town Council race drew ten candidates, while Carrboro’s will have six and Hillsborough’s Board of Commissioners race will feature four.

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education saw a wave of filings in the final days of the period, racking up 19 candidates — 16 of which are challenger candidates — for the four available seats.

The Durham city elections also saw a high number of entries. With an open mayor’s seat, seven candidates will be vying for the role and 11 residents will be running for the three at-large seats on the city council.

Candidates are listed by alphabetical order of their last names, and incumbents are indicated in parentheses.

Chapel Hill Mayor

Jess Anderson
Adam Searing

Chapel Hill Town Council (4 seats available)

David Adams
Breckany Teal Eckhardt
Jeffrey Hoagland
Melissa McCullough
Jon Mitchell
Theodore Nollert
Amy Ryan (Incumbent)
Elizabeth Sharp
Renuka Soll
Erik Valera

Carrboro Mayor

Barbara Foushee

Carrboro Town Council (3 seats available)

Catherine Fray
Jason Merrill
April Mills
Eliazar Posada (Incumbent)
Stephanie Wade

Hillsborough Mayor

Mark Bell

Hillsborough Board of Commissioners (3 seats available)

Meaghun Darab
Matt Hughes (Incumbent)
Evelyn Lloyd (Incumbent)
Victoria Masika

Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education (4 seats available)

Hasan Abdullah
Meredith Ballew
Rani Dasi (Incumbent)
Barbara Fedders
Vickie Feaster Fornville
Jane S. Gabin
Solomon Gibson III
Mariela Hernandez
Lauren Kelly
Scott McConnell
Honoria (Honor) Middough
Renee Peet
Ashton Powell (Incumbent)
Michelle Rissling
Taylor Tally
Deon Temne (Incumbent)
Allison Willis

Pittsboro Mayor

Kyle Shipp

Pittsboro Board of Commissioners (3 seats available)

John Bonitz (Incumbent)
J.A. (Jay) Farrell (Incumbent)
John Foley
Kali Korey
C. P. Stewart
Allen B. Wilson

Durham Mayor

C. Burruss
Jontae Dunston
DeDreana Freeman
Nick Pettiford
Leonardo (Leo) Williams
Marshall Williams, Jr.
Sylvester Williams
Mike Woodard

Durham City Council (3 At-Large Seats)

Nate Baker
Shanetta Burris
Javiera Caballero (Incumbent)
J.J. Campbell
Waldo Fenner
Bonita Green
Sheila Ann Huggins
Monique Holsey-Hyman (Incumbent)
Khalilah Karim
Carl Rist
Sherri Zann Rosenthal
Renee J. Vaughan

Additional Chapelboro coverage on candidates can be found on the Local Elections page, as well as other updates in the races as the election cycle continues this fall.

What Are Upcoming Important Dates to Know?

Voter registration for the local election cycle will close at 5 p.m. on Friday, October 13. Early voting for the fall local government elections begins on Thursday, October 19, while Election Day is Tuesday, November 7.

Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to remove Madison Garcia and Linda Mensing-Triplett from the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education race. While we initially shared that the pair were on the final version of the ballot, Garcia and Mensing-Triplett formally withdrew their candidacy with the state Board of Elections before the deadline to exit the race.

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