This week City Council will take an important vote on an issue that embodies one of my Senate campaign priorities — putting a stop to Raleigh’s overreach into the working of local governments.
Last year, over the objections of 75% of city voters, the General Assembly imposed voting districts on Asheville city council elections and eliminated our primary elections. On Tuesday, we will take the first step in undoing that overreach by setting a date for a public hearing on returning to at-large elections and restoring primaries in time for the 2020 elections.
In person and via email, many people have shared their opinions with me on this topic, and one consistent thread is that decisions about our elections should be made in Asheville, not Raleigh. I invite you to come to the council meeting on Tuesday night and speak on this issue, or attend the formal public hearing on September 24.
As your next state senator from District 49, I will work to keep the General Assembly from imposing its will on Asheville and Buncombe County. I will also seek more flexibility for all local governments across the state to implement policies that we want. Raleigh should help or get out of the way.
By Dennis Ludlow (Sharkshock) – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=77930618