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Filing opens this week
City's primary is set for Sept. 15
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Published: July 5, 2009
Updated: 07/05/2009 12:20 am
Filing for this year's Winston-Salem City Council elections opens at 8 a.m. on Monday, though many candidates already have publicly announced their intentions to run.
Seven of the eight current city- council members have said they will seek re-election.
Democrat Nelson Malloy, who represents the city's North Ward, said last month that he does not plan to run again.
Three other people -- two Democrats and a Republican -- have announced their plans to run for the North Ward's seat.
And, although the official filing period has yet to begin, more candidates than expected -- many of them with little or no political experience -- have already said that they are planning to run for the Winston-Salem City Council.
The current council is made up of eight representatives -- one from each of the eight wards around the city. Seven of the representatives are Democrats.
Robert Clark, who represents the city's West Ward, is a Republican. Mayor Allen Joines, also a Democrat, serves on the council but votes only in the event of a tie.
Voters in each ward have a say in two of the seats on the council -- their representative and the mayor, who is elected at-large.
And, though most of the races have at least two candidates, some -- including the mayoral race -- so far have just one person running.
Joines is seeking his third consecutive term as the city's mayor.
He would be the third mayor in the city's history to serve 12 consecutive years, if he wins the general election and serves the entire four-year term.
Other incumbents so far running unopposed are Vivian Burke in the Northeast Ward, Molly Leight in the South Ward and Clark in the West.
Winston-Salem's races are the only local municipal elections that are partisan this year.
Bethania, Clemmons, Kernersville, Lewisville, Rural Hall, Tobaccoville and Walkertown will all hold town elections this year, but their races are non-partisan.
Candidates pay $5 to register; the filing period closes at noon on July 17.
The primary election, for races with more than one candidate from the same political party, is set for Sept. 15 in Winston-Salem. The general election is Nov. 3.
■ Laura Graff can be reached at 727-7279 or at lgraff@wsjournal.com.
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