Small turnout, big result

That train wreck that four-term Councilwoman Joycelyn Johnson didn't see coming in the Democratic primary Tuesday was Derwin Montgomery, a Winston-Salem State University senior skilled in Internet campaigning. His win in the East Ward has changed the face of the Winston-Salem Council. And it signaled that an Oct. 6 runoff election and the Nov. 3 general election could bring even more change from voters, many frustrated with the city council's approval of millions of dollars in financial backing for the Dell computer plant, which laid off workers this year, and the stalled baseball stadium.

A pitifully few number of voters turned out -- less than 4 percent of just over 89,000 eligible to vote in the primaries. Vivian Burke of the Northeast Ward, the mayor pro tem, and Molly Leight of the South Ward easily beat back challenges in the Democratic primary from Sam Davis and Wesley Hudson, respectively. Leight will now almost certainly hold onto her seat, as no Republic filed to run against her, but Burke faces Republican Claudia Shivers in the general election.

In other races Tuesday, many voters went against the status quo.

Montgomery got more than twice as many votes as Johnson -- 530 votes to her 228. Social networking through Facebook and early voting, in large part by WSSU students concerned about crime and economic development, sealed the surprise victory. Montgomery got 440 early votes to Johnson's 28 early votes and six votes cast in absentee ballots. She got 194 votes Tuesday to his 90, but by then she'd already lost the race. Montgomery will in all likelihood take his seat on the council in December, as no Republicans filed to run in the East Ward.

He has said he plans to work in Winston-Salem and go to graduate school when he finishes at WSSU. "I'm here for a whole term. I don't plan to pull a Sarah Palin," he said yesterday, referring to the 2008 Republican vice-presidential candidate who abruptly resigned her job as Alaska governor this summer.

Councilwoman Johnson deserves public thanks for being a fine and tireless public servant. We endorsed her on this page last month, but we were impressed with Montgomery's ideas and energy.

In the Southeast Ward Democratic primary, Councilwoman Evelyn Terry got 160 votes, enough to make her the top vote-getter among the three candidates in her ward but not enough to seal her bid for a second term, which requires 40 percent of the votes. So she'll have to face James Taylor, who got 150 votes, in an Oct. 6 runoff. In November, the winner will face Republican Chuck Woolard, a critic of the handling of the ballpark deal.

Terry said that there's no question that change is in the air. "But change for what? I'm so afraid that it's just change for change sake." In her ward, she said, the controversy over Dell and the downtown baseball stadium had "absolutely nothing" to do with the election results. The Dell vote came before Terry took office.

Many citizens across the city have long complained about the council's vote on large financial incentives for the Dell plant and the taxpayer bailout of the ballpark project. D.D. Adams, who won the Democratic primary for the North Ward seat that Councilman Nelson Malloy is leaving after 20 years, has said she'll push for more transparency and accountability from the council. Her opponent in the general election, Republican John Hopkins, has said council members need to ask harder questions about the ballpark deal and other issues.

The winners in the Republican primary, Ted Shipley in the Southwest Ward and Peter Sorensen in the Northwest Ward, have also emphasized problems with the ballpark deal. Shipley faces Dan Besse, who went unchallenged in the Democratic primary, in the general election. Sorensen faces Democrat Wanda Merschel, who also fielded no challengers in the primary.

The Republican candidates would probably like to ride in on a groundswell of criticism of the Dell and ballpark deals. The incumbents would like to coast in on support from loyal constituents who have turned out in the past.

But Tuesday's primary reinforced the fallacy of counting on certainties in politics. All the candidates would do well to learn from Derwin Montgomery's campaign. He said he had learned from working on Barack Obama's presidential campaign. He already knew how to utilize Facebook, but he learned the importance of explaining to voters what the issues mean to them, and the value of early voting.

"I don't think a lot of the candidates were used to early voting.… Let's get them out early so that you have no excuses," he said.

This is going to be an exciting fall election season, one that could bring even more change to the Winston-Salem City Council.

More registered voters owe it to themselves to take part.