Showing posts tagged “Howard Clement”
Samiha Khanna ·
26 Feb 2010, 3:57 PM ·
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Several local politicos waited until the last minute to throw their names into the hat in Durham’s local and state elections. Candidates had until noon today to declare their intentions to run.
Several previously uncontested races now boast challengers, and in three offices—Durham District Attorney, Clerk of Court and N.C. House District 29—incumbent Democrats Tracey Cline, Archie Smith and Rep. Larry Hall face no challengers.
The rundown of today’s filings:
- Republican Laney Funderburk, of Glenmore Drive, has filed for N.C. Senate District 20, challenging incumbent Democrat Sen. Floyd McKissick. Funderburk ran for Durham City Council in 2007.
- Republican Patricia Ladd of Shaw Road has filed against incumbent Democrat Rep. H.M. Mickey Michaux.
- Republican Larry Yarbrough of Duck Pointe Drive in Roxboro has filed for N.C. House District 55, facing incumbent Democrat Rep. Winkie Wilkins. Two other Democrats are also vying for Wilkins’ seat.
- Democrat Tony Butler of North Willowhaven Drive will face incumbent Durham County Sheriff Worth Hill in a Democratic primary. Roy Taylor, a Republican, also has filed for this office.
- In the Durham school board election, Regina Stanley-King of Wayne Circle has entered the race against Pastor Fredrick Davis for the District 2 seat. Stanley-King first ran for office in 2005, in an unsuccessful bid against veteran Howard Clement for a City Council seat.
For the full list, visit the Durham Board of Elections Web site.
Durham, Durham County, North Carolina, education, news, politics 2010 elections, Archie Smith, Durham Board of Elections, Durham City Council, Durham County Sheriff, Durham politics, Durham school board, Howard Clement, Laney Funderburk, N.C. House, N.C. legislature, NC Senate, Pastor Fredrick Davis, Patricia Ladd, Regina Stanley-King, Rep. Larry Hall, Rep. Mickey Michaux, Rep. Winkie Wilkins, Sen. Floyd McKissick, Tony Butler, Tracey Cline, Worth Hill
Samiha Khanna ·
16 Dec 2009, 12:09 PM ·
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The Herald-Sun is reporting this morning that Lavonia Allison, the newly re-elected chair of the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People, has called an annual meeting of the historic group for January 24. The time and location have yet to be announced.
The announcement came in a news release Tuesday to select media outlets (the Indy was not included in the release) and according to The Herald-Sun, Allison made a comment indicating she wanted to engage the large number of black residents who turned out last Thursday for the election of the group’s chairperson for work on social justice issues.
Continue reading »
Durham, Durham County, news, politics Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People, Durham politics, Floyd McKissick, Howard Clement, Lavonia Allison, Melvin Whitley
Lisa Sorg ·
3 Nov 2009, 9:56 PM ·
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The incumbents for Durham City Council and mayor swept the challengers in four races that barely raised the pulse of voters. The closest race, which was still decided by a 71-26 margin was in Ward II, where longtime Councilman Howard Clement faced Libertarian Matt Drew. Clement received 7,258 votes to Drew’s 2,729.
According to unofficial results from the Durham County Board of Elections,with all but the provisional ballots counted, Mayor Bill Bell will return for a fifth term after defeating Steven Williams 8,233 votes to 2,345 votes.
Cora Cole-McFadden, who was first elected to Council in 2001, will continue to represent Ward I, beating upstart Donald Hughes 7,941 votes to 2,449 votes. And in Ward III, Mike Woodard has claimed his third second term by rolling over Allan Polak 8,704 to 1,307.
Voter turnout has been dismal, even for city elections. The 2007 race was enlivened by a colorful contest between Bell and an aggressive challenger, Republican Councilman Thomas Stith, and by the meals tax referendum, which voters soundly defeated. In that general election, 25 percent of registered voters turned out; the 2007 primary drew 10.6 percent of registered voters.
This year, little more than 4 percent of registered voters in Durham showed up at the polls for the primary. The turnout for the general election has not yet been announced on the Durham Board of Elections Web site.
Durham, politics allan polak, Bill Bell, Cora Cole-McFadden, donald hughes, Howard Clement, Matt Drew, Mike Woodard, Steven Williams
Lisa Sorg ·
3 Nov 2009, 9:22 PM ·
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With 25 of the 58 precincts reporting, incumbents Bill Bell, Cora Cole-McFadden, Howard Clement and Mike Woodard hold commanding leads. Mayor Bell is ahead of Steven Williams 75 percent to 24 percent. In Ward I Cole-McFadden leads 75-24 over Donald Hughes; Howard Clement has the tightest race in Ward II, but maintains a 69-29 margin over Libertarian Matt Drew; and Mike Woodard has the largest gap, 86-12, over Allan Polak.
Durham, politics allan polak, Bill Bell, Cora Cole-McFadden, donald hughes, Howard Clement, Matt Drew, Mike Woodard, Steven Williams
Samiha Khanna ·
27 Oct 2009, 5:18 PM ·
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Five Durham candidates filed pre-election campaign finance reports this week, and the lists of contributors didn’t include many surprises, but were interesting nonetheless. Candidates raising or spending more than $3,000 in their campaigns this fall were required to file pre-election reports.
Among the highlights: Mayor Bill Bell received contributions from Charles Wilson, of C.T. Wilson Construction, and long-time former Sheriff Roland Leary.
Bell contributed $100 to incumbent Mayor Pro-Tem Cora Cole-McFadden, who is running for City Council in Ward I against newcomer Donald Hughes. Cole-McFadden is seeking her third term on the Council. Her roll of contributors also included retired school board Chairwoman Kathryn Meyers, Steve Toler, a frequent consultant to city and county boards, and Virginia Bowman, CEO of Northgate Mall, and Steve Schewel, primary owner of the Independent Weekly newspaper. She also took contributions from Phail Wynn, an executive vice president at Duke University, and Charles Wilson Jr., CEO of C.T. Wilson Construction. Continue reading »
Durham, Durham County, news 2009 Elections, allan polak, Bill Bell, Cora Cole-McFadden, darius little, donald hughes, Durham, Durham City Council, Howard Clement, Matt Drew, Mike Woodard, Steven Williams
Samiha Khanna ·
13 Oct 2009, 3:11 PM ·
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In case any portion of the four percent of Durham’s voters who turned out for the municipal primaries was holding its breath … it’s official: Matt Drew finished in second place in the Ward II primaries, meaning that he’ll face off against incumbent — and 26-year-veteran — Howard Clement in the Nov. 3 general election.
The Durham County Board of Elections posted its official results this morning. Most of the votes were counted a week ago and Drew was in second place, separated from third-place finisher Sylvester Williams by 91 votes. But there were still about 100 provisional ballots left to count.
The 109 provisional ballots submitted narrowed the margin between Drew and Williams even further, to a mere 80 votes. A skinny margin, but a clear win.
Durham, Durham County, news, politics 2009 Elections, 2009 Primaries, Durham, Durham City Council, Howard Clement, Matt Drew
Lisa Sorg ·
2 Sep 2009, 9:06 AM ·
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Mayor Bill Bell and incumbent Council members Cora Cole-McFadden, Howard Clement and Mike Woodard received the endorsement of the Durham People’s Alliance, a progressive political action committee.
According to PA spokesman Milo Pyne, about 60 people attended its meeting Tuesday night.
The Indy will issue its endorsements for the Durham primary Sept. 16, the day before early voting begins. The primary will be held Oct. 6, with the general election to follow Nov. 3.
Durham, politics Bill Bell, Cora Cole-McFadden, Howard Clement, Mike Woodard, People's Alliance
Lisa Sorg ·
1 Sep 2009, 6:59 PM ·
1 Comment
Unlike two years ago, when Thomas Stith raised upwards of 20 Grand, including a $4,000 windfall from the conservative Pope family, for an unsuccessful mayoral run, there are no major campaign finance earthquakes in the Durham council and mayoral races, according to reports filed today.
Over the last month, Ward I incumbent Cora Cole-McFadden has raised nearly $2,400 in campaign contributions, including $390 in amounts of $50 or less and $2,000 in larger amounts.
A chunk of her money, $1,000, came from Durham businessman Ralph Owens, $300 from Larry McFadden, $200 from David Hundy, an accountant in Hansen Hills, Calif.; $100 each from Durham Realtor Jon Parker, pastor Jesse Jones, contractor H. Michael Spears, Sharon Elliott-Bynum, a nurse; and William Forte Jr.
Cole-McFadden has spent $1,776.
Meanwhile, Ward I challenger Donald Hughes has raised $779: $379 in contributions of $50 or less and $400 in larger amounts. Joining Hughes’ $100 club is Durham County Commissioner Joe Bowser, Ann Slifkin, a lawyer and Superior court-certified mediator; R. Bradley Long, who works in marketing for Adam & Eve, an adult novelty store; and F.V. Allison Jr., who serves on the American Dance Festival Board and is married to a Lavonia Allison, who leads the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People.
Hughes has spent $145.
As for Ward II incumbent Howard Clement, the only notable contribution to his campaign—and the only one, period—is $100 from Craigie Sanders, attorney for K&L Gates, which is pushing two controversial proposals: the 751 Assemblage development near Jordan Lake and the amendments to the billboard ordinance.
Campaign finance reports for the Durham primary election were due by 5 p.m. today. Look for updates on Ward III and other filers tomorrow.
Durham, politics campaign finance reports, Cora Cole-McFadden, donald hughes, Howard Clement
Matt Saldaña ·
13 Jul 2009, 11:35 AM ·
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Cary resident Lois Nixon announced her campaign today for Wake County Board of Education in District 9. As of 11 a.m., Nixon had not yet filed.
In a press release (DOC, 40KB), Nixon listed her experience as former director of Wake County Keep America Beautiful, and a certified environmental educator.
Meanwhile, Durham Ward 2 Councilman Howard Clement has a third challenger–relative unknown Sandra Howell, who filed this morning.
Also, Bull City Rising is reporting that Donald Hughes will challenge City Councilwoman Cora Cole-McFadden for Ward 1 in Durham.
Hughes, a frequent speaker at city and county meetings, is the son of former Councilwoman Jackie Wagstaff. As BCR notes:
Wagstaff herself lost a re-election bid for Council in 2001 to Cole-McFadden — the very candidate her son finds himself challenging eight years later.
Hughes has spoken passionately on a wide range of topics, including education and jobs creation. He sided with developers during the contentious April 13, 2009 vote on whether to conduct a public hearing to change Jordan Lake’s boundaries in order to accommodate a 164-acre mixed-use project, citing the potential for an increased tax base. Oddly, Hughes said that since Durham does not currently use Jordan Lake as a drinking-water source, the lake’s water quality should not be factored into the county’s decision. Durham purchased water from Jordan Lake during the 2007-08 drought.
“It’s been presented time and time again that this project is going to affect water quality in Durham. Durham’s water does not come from Jordan Lake; to present this as harming Durham’s water quality is false,” Hughes said at the meeting.
Hughes will kickoff his campaign on Wednesday at 10:30 a.m., in the parking lot of the old Winn-Dixie at Hopkins Street & Alston Avenue, his campaign’s Facebook page has announced.
If you want a sneak preview, a commercial under Hughes’ name has been listed on YouTube, and a campaign brochure under the same name has been uploaded to scribd.com.
Cary, Durham, Durham County, Wake County, environment, politics 751 Assemblage, Cora Cole-McFadden, donald hughes, elections, Howard Clement, jackie wagstaff, jordan lake, lois nixon, sandra howell
Lisa Sorg ·
10 Jul 2009, 2:56 PM ·
6 Comments
This post was updated at 10 a.m., Saturday, July 11.
Like an itinerant preacher, Patrick Byker has scoured nearly every corner of Durham proselytizing the gospel according to Fairway Outdoor Advertising: That billboards are selfless benefactors for communities and add to the common good.
So it’s not surprising that on his tour to convince Durham leaders of billboards’ healing qualities, he stopped by his old stomping grounds: The City-County Crime Cabinet, for which he served as secretary from 1997 to 1999.
Byker, now an attorney with K&L Gates, was one of several hired guns for Fairway Outdoor Advertising, which is lobbying to amend the city-county Unified Development Ordinance to allow digital billboards, among other changes.
Of the 89 billboards in Durham County, 47 are owned by Fairway. Under Fairway/ K&L Gates’ proposal, one quarter of Durham’s billboards—22—would be converted to digital, meaning a static, not flashing, message would change every eight seconds. While Byker showed the public service aspect of the signs—examples included “We Salute Our Heroes” from a billboard in South Carolina—he also played the fear card.
Byker criticized the Amber Alert/ Silver Alert system, which displays information on signs over North Carolina’s interstates, for only telling the public to call 5-1-1. (That number gives callers the same information distributed to the media. The N.C. Department of Transportation regulates the signs.)
“I don’t think it’s effective,” Byker said. “We can put a face on a billboard.”
However, an N.C. Department of Crime Control and Public Safety official told the Indy that “If you put too much information on signs, that’s a distraction.”
According to the Crime Control department, since January, it has issued 11 Amber Alerts and 113 Silver Alerts statewide. (The Web site lists data through May; no Amber Alerts were issued during that time in the Triangle.)
amber_quarterly-2009
silver_quarterly2009
Byker further pushed his case that digital billboards could help Durham with locating lost elderly people through a Silver Alert system broadcast on digital billboards. He cited one estimate (not by the U.S. Census) that 22 percent of Durham’s population will be older than 55 by 2011. The message: Soon we will be old and doddering. Who will help us? Digital billboards.
“This is an opportunity for Durham to be a regional leader for the Silver Alert system,” Byker said.
Of the 100 Silver Alerts issued through May, four of them were in Durham County. Wake County had 9; Orange County also had four.
Durham Police Chief Jose Lopez chimed in: “This is my professional opinion, not a personal one. There is no indication billboards cause accidents. It could only help in getting law enforcement message across.”
As for the aesthetics, he said, “It’s in the eye of the beholder,” adding “Either we agree with this company or the one in the future if we sell the billboards.” (Actually, the city and county could disagree with any company seeking to amend the UDO.)
County Commissioner Ellen Reckhow, who co-chairs the Crime Cabinet with City Councilman Howard Clement, asked Byker how much information people can absorb in eight seconds.
“I think it’s as much time as a person needs,” he replied. He offered no studies to back up his assertion.
Reckhow also quizzed Byker on how drivers would remember the information on the billboards, which can include the name of the missing person, the description and license plate number of a car and a phone number.
“Their passengers could take it down,” Byker replied.
Nearly three-quarters of Durham County commuters drive alone, according to the N.C. Commerce Department. This number does not account for people who are not driving to work.
Nearly 15 citizens’ and neighborhood groups oppose amending the ordinance to allow digital billboards.
City Councilman Howard Clement, a member of the Crime Cabinet, was apparently swayed by Byker’s presentation: “There is new information today. I think we need a massive re-education. So far, the issue has been one-sided. We’re not getting a balanced presentation.”
However, no community members or billboard opponents were allowed to offer their presentations.
For other blog posts on the billboard issue, go to our archives.
Durham, Durham County, news electronic billboards, Ellen Reckhow, Fairway Outdoor Advertising, Howard Clement, K&L Gates, Patrick Byker
