Zero of 14 Apex precincts were reporting results on the state board of elections website at 9:30 p.m. last night, but that didn’t stop Apex Town Council member Terry Mahaffey from sending out an email newsletter blast declaring victory for his endorsed slate of candidates.
The three Democrats—newcomers Sue Mu and Shane Reese and town council incumbent Ed Gray—held commanding leads, each with about a quarter of the vote in the early vote totals for the three open seats in a pool of eight candidates.
With all of the Election Day results outstanding, it was a bold call on Mahaffey’s part, though ultimately the correct one.
“I endorsed [these candidates],” Mahaffey wrote, “because in a wide field it was clear to me they had the most experience, the fullest understanding of how the town operates, and most importantly they shared a set of values with me around a commitment to responsible growth and environmental preservation. Tonight, the voters agreed.”
Mu, one of two Chinese American candidates running for local office in western Wake County this election cycle, was the top vote-getter in Apex, winning 8,499 votes, or about 22.88 percent of the vote overall. Mu holds degrees in chemical engineering and finance and is the president of RTP International Cultural Exchange LLC. She cited balancing growth and development, economic initiatives, and environmental sustainability as her priorities for the town council. Mu raised the most money out of all eight candidates, with a total haul of around $80,000.
Shane Reese won the second highest number of votes, a total of 8,318, or 22.39 percent. The president of the Downtown Apex Business Association, Reese ran on a three-pronged platform dedicated to ensuring responsible growth, boosting business and promoting downtown, and protecting Apex’s small-town character.
And Ed Gray, a one-term incumbent and the Apex Town Council’s current mayor pro tem, placed third, with 8,184 votes, or 22 percent of the total. Gray, an air force veteran and assistant federal public defender, prioritized affordable housing, public safety, and community initiatives as his top priorities on the council.
All the candidates will have their work cut out for them once they’re sworn in.
They’ll have to navigate a relationship with Apex mayor Jacques Gilbert, who, despite not having a vote on most matters that come before the council, is a larger-than-life presence in the town, and a forceful one in town hall who has drawn strong criticism from council members and town staff.
And they’ll have to vote on an annexation and rezoning proposal for a new data storage facility that a developer wants to build on a parcel of land just outside Apex. The proposal, which got a preliminary nod of approval from the town’s environmental advisory board last month, goes before the town’s planning board and town council early next year and could face a public hearing as soon as March. It is widely unpopular with residents.
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