The Independent Weekly’s view on the news
The eight elected members of the Chapel Hill Town Council used varying rationale Monday in ultimately tapping Donna Bell to join their ranks. Bell, an African American with experience on town boards, now is slated to complete the final two years of Bill Strom’s term. Here’s a breakdown of who said what in the order they said it and how they each arrived at their decisions:
*Reporter’s note: Scroll to the bottom if you want the quickie results from Election Day (no suprises in Carrboro or Hillsborough. CHCCS followed the Indy endorsement. Chapel Hill Town Council went to Penny Rich, Ed Harrison, Laurin Easthom and Gene Pease). If you’d like to read a scene-setting piece from Chapel Hill Mayor-elect Mark Kleinschmidt’s victory party, then read on.
Councilman Mark Kleinschmidt celebrates his mayoral victory as his twin sister clutches his shoulder and his mom bursts into tears.
Supporters erupted. His mother burst into tears. His sister shouted. Mark Kleinschmidt just smiled contently, arms crossed but giving the kind of ear-to-ear grin you could feel across the room, satisfaction and disbelief merging together on his face. The campaign had just received word that rival Matt Czajkowski had made his concession speech at the Franklin Hotel.
The progressive bloc had won. They’d just escaped a new, moderate business-centered group gaining traction and council seats. Not so fast.
Word came back that one precint, Patterson, was yet to report. Kleinschmidt was up a scant 168 votes. The jubiliation turned to shocked concern. It was too close to call.
“I don’t want a Dewey defeats Truman headline,” Kleinschmidt warned reporters at his R&R Grill party. The pack of local politicos returned to the laptop, clicking refresh again and again.
Moments later, the candidate’s ever-buzzing cell phone went off once more. It was Mayor Kevin Foy calling to congratulate him.
Kleinschmidt cautioned him, but thanked him for his support. Then the results flashed on the TV screens. It was final — Kleinschmidt had won.
Former Chapel Hill Councilman Cam Hill, who lost his seat by 63 votes to Matt Czajkowski in 2007, is taking credit today for controversial anti-Czajkowski mailers sent out days before the election.
On Monday, the Orange County Democratic and Republican parties issued a joint press release denouncing the material, which was sent by “CHC PAC.” Today, Hill told WCHL 1360 that he is the sole member of the group, which stands for Chapel Hill Caucus.
Both Czajkowski and challenger Mark Kleinschmidt have said they are disappointed in the tone of the fliers, which questioned Czajkowski’s concern for the environment and employees among other things.
Hill has until Wednesday to officially register as a political action committee, according to state election law.
The race for Chapel Hill mayor is too close to call between Matt Czajkowski and Mark Kleinschmidt, according to a poll released today by Public Policy Polling. The councilmen have 45 and 44 percent, respectively, with a 4 percent margin of error. Competitors Augustus Cho and Kevin Wolff each have 3 percent.
The survey found incumbent Ed Harrison (12 percent), Gene Pease (11 percent) and first-term Councilwoman Laurin Easthom (10 percent) leading the race for four seats on the Chapel Hill Town Council with Jon DeHart (9 percent) and Matt Pohlman (9 percent) battling Penny Rich (8 percent) and appointed Councilman Jim Merritt (7 percent) for fourth place. Will Raymond came in last at 3 percent.
The poll was conducted Saturday and Sunday with 30 percent of the 614 voters contacted responding as still undecided. Election Day is tomorrow.
Chapel Hill leaders will wait until after the next Town Council is sworn in to appoint a person to fill Bill Strom’s vacant seat. After being prodded by a petition, six members of the current council, four of whom are up for election, stated their support for waiting until after Dec. 7, when the new group takes office. Councilwoman Sally Greene was the only one not to weigh in, though she has stated her support on the local blog, Orangepolitics.org.
Mayor Kevin Foy was the only one adamant in targeting Nov. 9 at the date to make an appointment, though realizing he was in the minority, he encouraged the group to cancel the applicant’s presentations for that date.
Under town ordinance, the vacancy must be considered at every meeting until an appointment is made, but there is not a deadline. The group of six, Matt Czajkowski, Laurin Easthom, Ed Harrison, Mark Kleinschmidt, Jim Merritt (who voiced his support later in the meeting, during the consent agenda section) and Jim Ward, intends to delay the appointment each time until December.
Fliers paid for by the Kevin Wolff for Mayor Campaign popped up at Chapel Hill and Carrboro early voting sites this weekend, leading some to question if Wolff is still actively seeking office despite saying he’s dropping out and others denouncing the material’s anti-gay content.
On Monday, the fliers, which give a checklist comparing Wolff and competitors Matt Czajkowski and Mark Kleinschmidt, were gone at the Morehead Planetarium site, but a few soggy ones remained in a plastic bag attached to a Wolff campaign sign at Carrboro Town Hall. Among the differences, Wolff notes that unlike Kleinschmidt, one of five openly gay elected politicians in the state, he is not a “gay-rights activist” and “has children.”
The third time won’t be the charm for Kevin Wolff, who announced at a WCHL forum Thursday night that he’s ending his campaign.
Wolff, a patent attorney who failed in 2005 and 2007 bids as well, had taken out newspaper ads encouraging Councilman Matt Czajkowski to drop out of the race, saying that the two would split votes. Tonight he decided he was the one who needed to go.
Wolff said he wants to see a moderate mayor and that Czajkowski now provides the best chance to achieve that goal. He said he expects Councilman Mark Kleinschmidt, a liberal, to win the race. Wolff called on republican Augustus Cho to join him in leaving the two councilmen to fight for Chapel Hill’s top job.
This marks the end of what has been, by all accounts, a troubled and controversial campaign for Wolff. He upset some residents with a push poll in which the words “moral” and “mayoral” were confused, leading some to say that Wolff claimed to be the only “moral” candidate. He denied those charges.
His “Keep Matt where he’s at” advertisements also drew scrutiny. Wolff also was an outspoken critic of publicly financed elections before deciding to file for the funding. He then loaned himself $10,000 for his campaign, which disqualified him from the program.
Early voting started today, and Wolff’s name will remain on the ballot.
You can hear Wolff’s announcement here.
Matt Czajkowski has raised more than $21,000, triggering rescue funds for voter-owned candidate Mark Kleinschmidt. Czajkowski filed his 24-hour special report Friday, stating that he has accumulated $23,629.50 in private contributions. Among them are real estate leaders, developers and university professors.
Czajkowski’s sum means Kleinschmidt can claim an additional $4,000 in public financing on top of the $9,000 he’s earned already by gaining $4,505 from individuals and a political committee, according to his September report.
Competitor Augustus Cho’s latest report, filed Friday, shows only one private contribution for $200 from his treasurer. He’s loaned himself $547.50 for the campaign. Kevin Wolff’s most recent filing shows $10,210 raised including a $10,000 loan to himself.
Chapel Hill mayoral hopeful Kevin Wolff is calling on competitor Matt Czajkowski to drop out of the race in a half-page ad in today’s Chapel Hill News. Czajkowski isn’t budging, but declined to fire back.
The 5A advertisement is a letter addressed to voters and asks them to, “keep Matt where he’s at.” Czajkowski, the lone moderate voice on the council, still has two years left in his term.
Czajkowski did not want to respond to specific accusations.
“I’ve been saying from the very beginning of this campaign that as candidates, I at least believe that we have an obligation to focus on the challenges that we as Chapel Hill are facing,” he said. “I’m determined to make this an issue based campaign.”
The entire text of the ad can be found here at Wolff’s Web site, which was unveiled as part of the advertisement. Wolff was coy when asked about creating a Web site by the Indy for a story that hit stands today.
Wolff argues that Czajkowski has been ineffective in building allies and that citizens should elect him if they want to have two moderate voices working together.
The going rate for a half-page black-and-white political ad in The Chapel Hill News is $523.53
Is that the sound of a cash register? First term Chapel Hill Town Councilman Matt Czajkowski has filed for mayor of Chapel Hill; like fellow mayoral candidate Augustus Cho, he has not opted to participate in the voter-owned election program, allowing them to raise large sums for their campaigns.
Czajkowski loaned himself more than $17,000 for his 2007 town council campaign.
Town Councilman Mark Kleinschmidt is also expected to run, but has yet to file.
Update at 5 p.m.: Matt Pohlman has filed for Chapel Hill Town Council. He has not enrolled in the voter-owned election program. Mark Chilton has filed for Carrboro mayor
In other Orange County filings, Gary Wallach and MaryAnne Gucciardi are running for Chapel Hill-Carrboro School Board.
In Durham, the Ward 2 race got more interesting as a third candidate, Sylvester Williams, a minister, is running against incumbent Howard Clement III and Libertarian Matt Drew.
Update at 5 p.m.: Incumbent Cora Cole-McFadden has filed for Durham City Council in Ward I.
And in the No Big Surprise department, incumbent Mayor Bill Bell is running for a fifth term, effectively dousing Mike Woodard’s mayoral aspirations this year. Woodard is running for re-election to City Council.
In Wake County, candidate filings for District 7 are popping up like mushrooms after a rain: Deborah Prickett and Jerry Ballan are running against Karen Simon.
Meanwhile Rodger Koopman is running for re-election in District B and Anthony Integlia is the sole person seeking the District C seat.
Update at 5 p.m.: Chris Augustine has filed for Wake School Board District 2, bringing the candidate total in that race to four. In Cary, Jennifer Robinson will face Cynthia Sinkez in District A.
In Raleigh, incumbent Mayor Charles Meeker filed for re-election; he’ll face Mark Enloe, who also filed today. Nancy MacFarlane is running for another term in Council District A; currently, the only district without a candidate is District E.
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