Editorial: Participate in election season 2013 Saturday, August 31, 2013 Although the November municipal elections are several weeks away, the ballot is set, campaigns are heating up and voters should be watching with interest and planning to participate in the process. Municipal elections not paired with state or national races are notorious for drawing low numbers of citizens to the polls. That was the case in 2011, when a mere 18 percent of registered voters in Pitt County cast ballots to elect municipal leaders. Despite a tight race for mayor in Greenville, fewer than 10 percent of the city’s residents participated in that important decision. In addition to Greenville, residents in Ayden, Bethel, Farmville, Fountain, Grifton, Simpson and Winterville will elect mayors and various board members on Nov. 5. Grimesland elects five aldermen, who then select the mayor from among themselves. Falkland elects its mayor and board of commissioners every four years and is not on this year’s ballot. In Greenville, Mayor Allen Thomas is seeking to overcome challenger Tom Best to serve a second term. Councilman Calvin Mercer is giving up his District 4 seat to challenge Dennis Mitchell for the council’s at-large seat; District 1 Councilwoman Kandie Smith faces challenger Clinton Ray Anderson Jr. for her seat; Marion Blackburn has two challengers, Thor Gyifason and Kathehrine Wetherington, for her District 3 seat; Rick Smiley and Terri Williams are running for the District 4 seat; Richard Croskery, Michael Overton and James (J.C.) Woodley are vying for the District 5 seat being vacated by Councilman Max Joyner; and Mayor Pro-Tem Rose Glover faces no opposition for her District 2 seat. Choosing who will lead Greenville and the other Pitt County towns is critical in determining the rate of growth, in both jobs and population, and the direction of city policy, programs and services. Changes in voting laws enacted by the GOP-controlled General Assembly have sparked some interest in the voting process by those on the other side of the political aisle. Those who perceive the new laws as a means for suppressing opposition votes are responding with efforts to register more citizens to vote and inspire them to exercise that basic American right. In an era of sustained joblessness in Pitt County despite rapid growth and changes in available opportunities, every eligible voter should be keenly interested in choosing who will make decisions for them. Since there is only one way to adequately express that interest, citizens should be active participants in this election season and express themselves wisely
Posted on: Sun, 01 Sep 2013 16:27:20 +0000
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