Good morning, readers.
Here in Wake County, the new year has brought with it a shift in local politics.
Wake County Public Schools board member Tara Waters was officially sworn in as the newest member of the county Board of Commissioners on Tuesday, filling Dr. James West’s vacant seat.
West, 79, died on November 18 “following a sudden health issue,” according to his family. He was a longtime activist, participating in the Civil Rights Movement as a college student and later co-founded a youth development collaborative to help Raleigh teens. In 1999, he was elected to the Raleigh City Council and in 2010, to the Wake County Board of Commissioners.
“Dr. West was unbelievably committed to this community and his mission was always making sure that people who didn’t have a voice had one through him,” current board chair Shinica Thomas said in a news release. “His storytelling, work ethic, integrity and his love for this community are going to be greatly missed.”
Waters said she is “proud to carry on Dr. West’s legacy of lifting up our vulnerable residents and helping them gain greater access to the services they need to thrive.”
Waters was nominated for the District 5 seat by the Wake County Democratic Party, beating out four other candidates: Knightdale Mayor Jessica Day, former Raleigh mayoral candidate DaQuanta Copeland, Tammy Martin, and Frank White Sr.
Waters’s seat will come up for election in November along with two other Board of Commissioners seats. Waters and DaQuanta Copeland have each filed to run and will compete in this year’s primary election on March 5.
Waters, whose day job is a manager of the Volunteer Raleigh program, served as the vice chair of the Wake County Board of Education before her new appointment. Waters’s now-empty school board seat will be filled by appointment, with board members voting on nominees later this month.
Have a good Thursday.
— Jasmine
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Today’s weather
Sunny with a high of 51 degrees.
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