DURHAM -- August's City Council vote for a nonbinding resolution in favor of extending civil-marriage rights to same-sex couples is shaping up as an issue in at least a couple of this fall's ward elections.
One of the challengers in Ward 2, Sylvester Williams, has made it known he opposes the resolution. His stance on it helped him pick up an endorsement from a newspaper catering to the black community, the Triangle Tribune.
Opposition to same-sex civil marriage is the position "the country takes as far as the Defense of Marriage Act, it is what the state of North Carolina takes, as far as saying it's one man, one wife, and the position I take is the one that the Bible takes, that it's between one man and one woman," Williams said. "And I believe that the resolution passed by the City Council is no more than grandstanding."
Williams' stance is counter to that of all three council incumbents running this fall, including Ward 2's Howard Clement. The resolution -- introduced at the urging of local activist Joshua Lee Weaver -- passed the council unanimously.
The issue also divides other Ward 2 challengers.
One, Darius Little, said at a Sept. 22 forum he "would have voted in favor" because doing otherwise stands for restricting "the abilities of others to have their rights."
Fellow challenger Matt Drew said individual relationships "and what you do in those relationships [are] your business," but added that the council "has no business approving or disapproving either way."
In the Ward 1 race, incumbent Cora Cole-McFadden joined her fellow council members in voting for the resolution. But challengers Donald Hughes and John Tarantino echoed Drew in saying the council shouldn't have weighed in.
Hughes said "the law as it currently stands is the one we should abide by" until state leaders change it. Tarantino added that in his view, it wasn't "appropriate for the City Council to make a resolution or any kind of statement supporting or involving" the issue.
Ward 3 incumbent Mike Woodard like other council members voted for the resolution. His challenger, Allan Polak, and Ward 2 challenger Sandra Howell, missed the Sept. 22 Young Democrats of Durham County forum and have yet to weigh in.
The question on the issue came from Harlan Brown, an unaffiliated voter who also sought to pin down the candidates on their views about abortion. But Young Democrats moderator Zack Hawkins disallowed that question.
Williams' position has drawn flak as well as praise. The criticism came from Carl Kenney, a local commentator who like Williams is a minister.
Kenney in a blog posting said political groups that have declined to endorse Williams should tell him he's "too homophobic to represent the citizens of Durham."
He added that Williams is "too much of a conservative Christian in a city that is too progressive for his old-time religion."
In an interview, Kenney also said he think it's "important that we maintain that delicate balance between the separation of church and state," and noted that Durham "has a very important gay and lesbian community."
But Williams brushes off the criticism and says he's gotten positive feedback from voters.
"One of the things I've said is that there's [an] elitist group in the city of Durham that tries to control the thought process of people," he said. "But the communities I've gone to, white, black, what have you, have all agreed with me. This is a void in the city of Durham. You can be a responsible citizen, well thought out, and be opposed to what the church calls sinful behavior."
DURHAM -- A labor group affiliated with the AFL-CIO has endorsed the re-election campaigns of Mayor Bill Bell, City Council members Cora Cole-McFadden and Mike Woodard, and the bid for the Ward 2 council seat mounted by Sylvester Williams.
The Triangle Labor Council offered the endorsements after learning among other things that the four support giving public-sector employees collective-bargaining rights, said Michael Gravinese, the group's president.
Gravinese added that the group would send a mailing to members advising them about who received the endorsement.
The Triangle Labor Council is a confederation of local unions. The largest are the Teamsters and the American Federation of Government Employees.
Bell is running for re-election against Steven Williams, while Ward 3 incumbent Woodard is facing challenger Allan Polak. Voting in those races won't occur until Nov. 3.
Candidates in the Ward 1 and Ward 2 seats first have to survive an Oct. 6 primary.
In Ward 1, Cole-McFadden is facing challengers Donald Hughes and John Tarantino. In Ward 2, incumbent Howard Clement is facing challengers Williams, Matt Drew, Darius Little and Sandra Howell.
Two people will advance in each race to the Nov. 3 general election.
Williams Only One Vote Behind Incumbent - The Herald Sun By: Ray Gronberg DURHAM -- Ward 1 City Council challenger Donald Hughes out-organized incumbent Cora Cole-McFadden on the way to picking up a key endorsement from Durham's main black political group, local activists say.
Hughes gained backing from the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People in part because his top supporters had been careful to comply with group rules requiring regular participation in its meetings, people familiar with the process said Friday.
Cole-McFadden, by contrast, joined several of her supporters on the sidelines of the group's Thursday night endorsement conclave after running afoul of the participation rules.
Hughes was happy with the outcome.
The committee's endorsement "was definitely needed to give our campaign the momentum going into the primary," he said Friday. "The organization stood up for change and new leadership. I have a big smile on my face today."
Also pleased with the committee's work was Ward 2 incumbent Howard Clement, who left Thursday's meeting with a clean sweep of the endorsements from the city's three main political groups.
"The election has just begun," Clement said Friday after voicing appreciation for the Durham Committee's support. "I don't take anything for granted. That group and the other groups [the Friends of Durham and the People's Alliance] were very gracious to endorse me, but I know my work is cut out for me if I expect to get re-elected."
Nearly as happy was Clement was Ward 2 challenger Sylvester Williams, who finished just behind the incumbent among committee leaders.
Durham Committee Chairwoman Lavonia Allison made a point Thursday night of saying the decision in the Ward 2 race had been "extremely, extremely close."
Reports were that Williams ran only one vote behind Clement in the preliminary screening by the group's political committee. The group's general membership can override the screening, but the group's rules make that difficult.
"Our message is beginning to resonate," Williams said, adding that he expects to pick up labor-union support from a group that has yet to announce formally its endorsements.
Cole-McFadden -- who has been part of the leadership of both the Durham Committee and the local Democratic Party -- shrugged off the decision. She noted that she'd carried the Friends and People's Alliance endorsements, along with those of two police groups. Also, like Williams, she's expecting labor-union support.
"I don't see it as a blow, mainly because I know the people in the community know my work," said Cole-McFadden, who won in 2001 and 2005 with Durham Committee backing. "And I have overwhelming support in the community."
She added that she'd gotten the votes of four of 10 members of the group's political committee. "That cannot hardly define my [campaign]," she said. "I won't let it."
Another Ward 2 challenger, Darius Little, signaled dissatisfaction with the outcome. Like Cole-McFadden, he noted that only a small number of the group's leaders participated in the preliminary vote.
"It doesn't take a Harvard graduate to figure out that this year's Durham Committee endorsement doesn't mean as much as in the past," Little said.
Little also indicated he was upset because he's spent significant time doing volunteer work for the group. "Clearly, true service to the community means nothing," he said.
The Durham Committee's influence has been questioned in some elections. But its endorsements plainly made a difference in last year's County Commissioners race, thanks to the heavy black turnout inspired by President Barack Obama's campaign.
Council primaries like the one coming up Oct. 6 are traditionally low-turnout affairs. And local activists profess uncertainty about how well motivated Friends and People's Alliance members will be in this cycle.
The Durham Committee, on the other hand, appears ready to go. "That meeting hall was packed," Clement said, referring to the group's Thursday meeting.
Cole-McFadden and Hughes are sharing the Ward 1 ballot with John Tarantino. The Ward 2 ballot includes Matt Drew and Sandra Howell in addition to Clement, Little and Williams. Ward 2 Vote the Closest the Committee Has Ever Seen - The Herald Sun From Staff Reports
September 4, 2009 DURHAM -- The Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People, one of the area's top three political action groups, late Thursday night announced it had endorsed challenger Donald Hughes and incumbent Howard Clement in the city's contested Ward 1 and Ward 2 City Council primary races.
The Committee's chairwoman, Lavonia Allison, said the endorsements first had to be approved by the Committee's political committee and then be voted upon by the general body.
While Hughes easily won the endorsement over Cole-McFadden, Allison said Clement barely got past challenger Sylvester Williams.
She said the Committee does not announce vote totals, but said the Ward 2 vote, "was the closest we've ever had since I've been here.
"It was extemely, extremely close."
Allison has been with the Committee since 1968, all in executive positions.
The liberal People's Alliance and the conservative Friends of Durham political group earlier endorsed the incumbents, Cora Cole-McFadden in Ward 1 and Clement in Ward 2.
The primary is Oct. 6 and the general election is Nov. 3.
DURHAM -- A Ward 2 City Council candidate wants incumbent Howard Clement to withdraw from the race and endorse a potential successor.
The suggestion came from challenger Darius Little, who in a recent e-mail to Clement nominated himself as the longtime councilman's obvious "political offspring."
The other three candidates in the race "have absolutely nothing noteworthy, as you and myself, to bring to the table," Little said in the message, which was also circulated to other city officials. "Let's be serious here."
Little told the 75-year-old Clement he should withdraw on account of age.
"I have observed you and you have reached an age where it is rather difficult for you to even stand," the 29-year-old challenger said. "Also, you don't drive, so you have to rely on others to get where you're going, each and every day."
Asked for his reaction, Clement said he thought it "best just to have no comment" on Little's e-mail.
Clement added, however, that he isn't dropping out of the race. "Not by a long shot," he said.
Little's message did draw criticism at Bull City Rising, a local blog run by Duke University IT administrator Kevin Davis. Davis got hold of a copy of the e-mail and posted it.
Critics of the challenger's idea said that at the very least, it's not clear Little, an ex-felon, would be the first choice even for people looking for an alternative to Clement.
The other candidates in the Ward 2 race are Matt Drew, Sandra Howell and Sylvester Williams. They, Clement and Little face off in an Oct. 6 primary.
Other than Clement, the best-known of the group going into the race was Williams, a local minister and opponent of the proposed East End Connector who's urged officials to cancel the project or at least offer generous compensation to homeowners who'd be displaced by the new highway.
The tone of Little's message also drew fire in comments to Davis' blog. One, City Councilman Eugene Brown, said of the challenger in a posting, "the best word to use in his case is: chutzpa[h]."
"If this letter isn't the tackiest thing I've ever heard, it's close," added another critic, real estate agent Ellen Dagenhart.
There were a couple of pro-Little comments, but they sparked a response from Davis, who said they'd come from "nearly identical" Internet Protocol addresses and seemed "obviously spoofed."
"Whoever's doing the 'astroturfing,' stop," Davis said. "You're not helping whatever cause you're trying to push."
DURHAM — Gov. Beverly Perdue on Thursday signed into law a bill that gives county governments in the Triangle authority to call referenda on levying a half-percent local-option sales tax to support public transit.
The increase would be tacked on to existing sales taxes.
Perdue’s decision had been widely expected, as she’d said during last year’s gubernatorial campaign the region merited the opportunity to raise money for bus and rail service locally.
The new law puts the Triangle and the Greensboro/Winston-Salem area on the same footing as Charlotte, which has used a voter-approved sales-tax surcharge to build a new commuter-rail line.
The governor acknowledged the precedent.
“In the Triangle area, if I were a voter here, I would vote to do it simply because I’ve spent much of my time on [Interstate] 40 every day between Chapel Hill and Raleigh,” she said Thursday. “I would have done anything not to have to some days wait an hour each way.”
But even as Perdue was signing the authorization bill, the potential levy was shaping up in Durham as a major issue in this year’s mayoral and City Council elections.
And it sets up as one that mostly divides incumbents from challengers, judging by the candidates’ responses to pre-endorsement questionnaires from the People’s Alliance political action committee and the Independent Weekly newspaper, self-described “progressive” entities.
Mayor Bill Bill, Ward 1 Councilwoman Cora Cole-McFadden, Ward 2 Councilman Howard Clement and Ward 3 Councilman Mike Woodard all signaled support for moving ahead with a sales surcharge.
Cole-McFadden said she initially had reservations about the idea because of the sales tax’s “regressive nature,” but now considers the alternatives for the poor worse.
“If we are to keep pace with other cities in this region, we must get on board,” she told the People’s Alliance. “If you look at the soaring gasoline prices, it could be a more affordable transit alternative for those who want and need an alternative mode of transportation.”
Bell offered strong backing for the levy to the Independent, saying he “would support the referendum” provided County Commissioners comply with state-dictated planning mandates. To the People’s Alliance, he said only that he’d supported the transit bill as it passed the N.C. House.
The only challenger favoring the levy is Ward 2 candidate Sandra Howell. She told the People’s Alliance it “will improve mobility while preserving infrastructure,” offering transportation choices and promoting economic growth.
Outright opposition came from Ward 1 challengers Donald Hughes and John Tarantino, and Ward 2 challenger Matt Drew.
Hughes said he favors “adequately funding” regional transit by other means, but believes the sales tax, despite its exemption of food, would be “severely regressive” and thus likely to harm Durham’s poor.
Tarantino said he opposes any increase in the sales tax rate, as it would deter consumer spending. Drew said that because transit already “can’t support itself,” giving it additional funding would “simply put us further into the red both financially and ecologically.”
Two other Ward 2 challengers, Darius Little and Sylvester Williams, indicated that they think the sour economy makes this a bad time to be considering the idea.
“Durham’s unemployment rate has doubled over the past year, and I am not in favor of raising taxes in a recession while so many of our residents are losing their jobs and their homes,” Williams told the People’s Alliance.
“At the current moment, I would not support a tax increase, of any sort,” Little added.
The remaining candidates, Ward 3 challenger Allan Polak and mayoral challenger Steven Williams, seemed to straddle the issue.
Polak told the Independent he wouldn’t favor increasing property or sales taxes except for projects “deemed absolutely vital to the city’s operations.” He added that he supports “finding innovative solutions to Durham’s transportation issues.”
Steven Williams told the Independent he’d favor a tax increase “for a ‘greener’ means of transit,” but on his People’s Alliance questionnaire he said the city should first recalculate or redirect existing taxes.
The decision about whether and when to call a referendum on the levy is solely up to the County Commissioners, though City Council members would participate in transit planning and likely would be expected to campaign for the measure.
Commissioners Chairman Michael Page said Thursday his board has yet to discuss the matter.
Woodard on his People’s Alliance questionnaire said he’s expecting a referendum next year.
Voters are scheduled to narrow the Ward 1 and Ward 2 fields in an Oct. 6 primary. The general election for all city races will follow on Nov. 3.
A third candidate filed papers on Wednesday to join the campaign for the Ward 2 seat on Durham's City Council.
Pastor Sylvester Williams of the Assembly at Durham Christian Center said he is running under the slogan "A new face for a new Durham."
The candidate said he would like to change the way Durham approaches a host of issues, from improving partnerships with the school system to prevent dropouts to using incentives to prompt businesses to bring jobs to high-unemployment neighborhoods in the Bull City.
He also wants city agencies to do more to rehabilitate neglected properties, improve public safety and address environmental concerns.
"It's a new day and a new time now, and especially with the economic environment that we're in now we need new ideas and new thoughts," the pastor said.
Williams and fellow challenger Matt Drew, an IT professional, are both vying to wrest the office from longtime incumbent Howard Clement, who has sat on the council for more than a quarter-century. Clement and Drew both filed to run on Monday.
"He's served well, the years he's been there, but he's a little older now," Williams said of the incumbent.
When asked about Drew, Williams said, "I think I have more to offer as far as being in contact with the local people."
The Ward 2 race will be put to a vote on Oct. 6, when the city will hold a primary election to weed out all but the top two vote-getters. The campaign will be decided at the ballot box in the Nov. 3 general election.
Also running, so far unchallenged, are Mayor Bill Bell and Councilman Mike Woodard in Ward 3. Neither Mayor Pro Tem Cora Cole-McFadden, a councilwoman serving in Ward 1, nor anyone else has yet filed to run for that council seat.
Minister to Challlege Councilmen Clement - The Herald Sun By: Ray Gronberg DURHAM -- This year's City Council race got its first announced challenger Thursday when a local minister, Sylvester Williams, said he'd challenge incumbent Councilman Howard Clement for the Ward 2 seat.
Williams, a Durham native, said in a morning news conference that he wants to "reduce the growing disparity between Durham's neighborhoods," particularly that between his native East Durham and the rest of the city.
The effort, he said, will require focusing business incentives on established local enterprises and on new businesses willing to hire people in areas where unemployment is highest.
The city also needs to give landlords more incentives to rehab old and abandoned houses, he said.
Williams added that while he and his supporters "appreciate [Clement's] service though the years, we also look at our community, and we see where we haven't progressed as other parts of Durham have."
Thursday's announcement by Williams, pastor of the Assembly at Durham Christian Center on Bryant Street, came just days before the filing period for this year's city election opens.
The county Board of Elections will begin registering candidates Monday at 8:30 a.m., and continue until noon on June 17.
Up for grabs this year are the mayor's chair, now held by Bill Bell, and three ward-based council seats. Bell, Clement, Ward 1 incumbent Cora Cole-McFadden and Ward 3 incumbent Mike Woodard are all expected to seek re-election.
Council candidates have to live in the wards they represent, but voters from the entire city will decide the winner of each of the seats. The election is non-partisan.
Ward 1 covers central and northern Durham, Ward 2 the southeastern parts of the city and Ward 3 the western parts of the city.
Williams is making his first try for elective office but has spoken up about public affairs from time to time.
He's been a critic of the proposed East End Connector -- a highway project that would link the Durham Freeway and U.S. 70 -- on the grounds it would displace a predominantly black neighborhood.
William also drew attention in the late 1990s when he urged the Durham Public Schools to stop teaching the theory of evolution. He argued that the theory is racist "because it teaches black students that white students have evolved at a far greater pace than they have,"
Another minister and potential Ward 2 candidate, Melvin Whitley, said earlier this week he wouldn't seek office this year.
Clement is the council's senior member and has been in office since 1983. He was re-elected easily in 2005 but by a smaller margin, percentage-wise, than Cole-McFadden and Woodard secured in winning their races.
