Personality-packed Buncombe commissioners race highlights local elections

Posted on by Jason Sandford

All eyes may be on the presidential race this election year, but it’s the race for the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners that has brought local personalities into the spotlight.

The election filing period closed Friday with no less than 15 people running for four seats on the board. The personalities include a weekly newspaper editor, one current and one past member of Asheville City Council, a former community college president and a former minor league baseball general manager.

The nine Democrats running for commissioner are: Commissioners Carol Peterson and Bill Stanley; Vernon Dover, a retired Progress Energy official; J. Ray Elingburg, a former county clerk of court; K. Ray Bailey, retired president of Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College; Robert E. “Bob” Hill of Candler; Holly Jones, an Asheville City Council member; local businessman Keith Thomson; and City Paper editor Cecil Bothwell.

Here are the six Republicans: Asheville real estate broker John Carroll, former Asheville City Councilman Joe Dunn; Michael Fryar, who pushed the Let Asheville Vote effort last year; Ron McKee, part owner and former general manager of the Asheville Tourists; Don Yelton, a local government critic and member of the Carolina Stompers; and local businessman Steve Bledsoe, who ran unsuccessfully for City Council last year.

For chairman of the Buncombe board, it will be Republican Chairman Nathan Ramsey facing fellow Commissioner David Gantt.

In Buncombe County’s three state House seats, Democratic Rep. Susan Fisher is running unopposed in District 114. State Rep. Bruce Goforth, a Democrat, faces a challenge from Republican newcomer Paul Purdue in District 115. Democrat Jane Whilden faces Republican Tim Moffitt to represent District 116, a seat held by Rep. Charles Thomas, a a first-term Republican who decided not to seek re-election. In Buncombe County’s state Senate District 49, Sen. Democrat Martin Nesbitt faces a challenge from Republican R.L. Clark, a challenger who held the Senate seat from 1995 to ‘98.

Register of Deeds Otto DeBruhl, a Democrat who has held the office for more than three decades, is running unopposed.

Click here to read the full list of candidates running for state and local office.

Here’s a list of upcoming key dates:

• April 11: Last day to register to vote or change party affiliation before primary.
• April 17: Early voting for primary begins.
• April 29: Last day to request an absentee ballot by mail.
• May 3: Early voting ends at 1 p.m.
• May 6: Primary election. Voters narrow the field to four Democrats and four Republicans for commissioner, and one from each party for chairman.
• Nov. 4: General election.
Source: Buncombe County Board of Elections

— Jason Sandford, multimedia editor

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

One thought on “Personality-packed Buncombe commissioners race highlights local elections”

Leave a Reply

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.