Items from across the Triad and beyond
Candidates crowd ballot as filing period winds down
Earl Jones, ousted as representative of NC House District 60 in the Democratic primary two years ago, is seeking a rematch with the seat’s current occupant, Rep. Marcus Brandon. Jones had represented the district, which harnesses predominantly African-American areas of High Point and Greensboro through rural corridor of Guilford County, since 2003. Jones filed on Monday and Brandon announced earlier that he would seek reelection.
Libertarian Kent Wilsey of Greensboro is challenging
Republican John Blust for House District
62, covering northwest Guilford.
Jeremy Williams of High Point and Hank
Henning of Jamestown — both Republicans
— filed to run for Guilford County Commission
in District 6, which hugs Interstate 40 at the
western end of the county, on Monday.
Sharon Kasica, who describes herself as a
small business owner, filed to run for NC House
District 59. The active Republican Party member
and Guilford County native is running against
Republican Jon Hardister.
Larry Sharp, a Greensboro Libertarian,
filed to run for the 6th Congressional District.
Incumbent Howard Coble has filed for reelection
to the seat, along with fellow Republicans
Billy Yow of Greensboro and Jim Allen of
Burlington.
Incumbent and Eden resident Phil Berger, the
most powerful member of the NC Senate, will
face off against fellow Republican Bobby Coffer
of Browns Summit in District 26.
Greensboro resident Tammy Walker threw
her hat in against three others for the at-large
seat on the Guilford County School Board.
Paul
Daniels filed for reelection in District 5, where
he faces two challengers, and incumbents
Carlveena Foster and Amos Quick filed for
reelection in districts 1 and 9 respectively.
Wayne Patterson, president of the Forsyth
County NAACP, filed on Monday for the NC
House District 72 seat being vacated by Earline
Parmon, who is running for NC Senate District
32. And on Tuesday, Ed Hanes joined the race.
Patterson and Hanes’ entry creates a competitive
three-way contest in the Democratic leaning,
heavily African-American district, which covers
much of northeast Winston-Salem. Jimmie
Bonham, a Parmon ally, had already filed for the
seat.
All three candidates are previous aspirants to public office. Patterson ran unsuccessfully for Winston-Salem City Council in 2009, Hanes failed to unseat Sen. Linda Garrou in Senate District 32 in 2010, and Bonham fell short of winning a seat on the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School Board, also in 2010. Charlie Mellies is the sole Republican in the House District 72 race.
In House District 74, which stretches across
the northern portion of Forsyth County, Debra
Conrad and Larry Brown have competition from
a third Republican, Glenn L. Cobb, to fill the
seat vacated by Dale Folwell. Two Democrats,
John C. Gladman and David W. Moore, have
also entered the race. Gladman, who serves as
assistant director for emergency shelter at the
Salvation Army of Winston-Salem, ran unsuccessfully
for Forsyth County Commission in
2008.
Republican Gene Lowder threw in for the
crowded race for the three seats up for grabs in
the Republican-leaning District B on the Forsyth
County Commission, along with incumbents
Richard Linville, Gloria Whisenhunt and David
Plyler; and fellow challengers Mark Baker, John
R. Bost and Bob Prescott.
Mike Beitler of Oak Ridge is among a field
of three Republicans challenging Democratic
incumbent Elaine Marshall for NC secretary of
state. Beitler ran as a Libertarian for US Senate
in 2010, while Marshall won the Democratic
nomination in the race.
Both candidates lost to incumbent Republican Richard Burr. Filing closes for most races on Wednesday, but has been extended for districts 4, 5, 6 and 8 on the Guilford County Commission until March 9.
