For seven years when Lorrin Freeman was clerk of court, Blair Williams was her number two. If he succeeds in ousting Jennifer Knox, the Democrat won’t have a huge learning curve. Williams argues that, under Knox, the office has become lax in customer service for probate matters, eliminated internship programs with Shaw and St. Augustine’s universities, and relied on antiquated technology. He also pledges to make the office more accessible to non-English speakers.
Knox—a Republican who is Jesse Helms’s granddaughter—narrowly won four years ago, after serving first as an assistant district attorney and then a District Court judge. She opposes her party’s attacks on the judiciary and disputes Williams’s assessment of her office’s operations. But we’re backing Williams, who we believe would run the office fairly and efficiently.