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It’s Thursday, August 22.
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Good morning, readers.
Despite pushback from some prominent Democrats in Raleigh, the Wake County Democratic Party this week announced its endorsements in the nonpartisan local races on ballots this fall, including the Raleigh City Council races in which multiple Democrats are running.
The party’s 11-member executive council endorsed several incumbent candidates and also endorsed some newcomers over candidates that it had endorsed in 2022 including for mayor and in District A. While the party didn’t provide explanations for its picks, it did publish candidates’ responses to a questionnaire it sent to all on its website.
Earlier this month, a group of Democrats and former elected officials sent a letter to party chair Kevyn Creech and executive director Wesley Knott asking the party not to endorse between Democrats in the local races. They noted that the party’s 2022 endorsements “created a lot of divisions within the Democratic party” and worried that endorsements this cycle could further divide Raleigh, and Wake Democrats, in an election year when it’s important for Democrats to stay united.
Creech defended the party’s decision to endorse, explaining that the party has been making endorsements in local races since 2011 and that its endorsements allows “for people without huge connections and dollars to have a shot at running.”
Separately, the local party’s Jewish caucus had concerns about Raleigh council members Mary Black in District A, and Christina Jones in District E, and their advocacy for a Gaza ceasefire resolution while on the council. Caucus members had also asked the party not to make endorsements in the city council races this cycle.
Have a good Thursday.
—Jane
Editor’s note: A story we published last month about property management software company RealPage, which the NC Attorney General and U.S. Department of Justice are investigating for alleged antitrust violations, was significantly edited to remove references to a report from the Triangle chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America. The DSA retracted its report and posted its own statement.
Durham
The Durham Public Schools Board of Education could vote today to approve the district’s plan to relocate downtown’s Durham School of the Arts to a site roughly three miles north.
Semiconductor manufacturer Wolfspeed plans to close its Durham plant.
Wake
The Raleigh City Council advanced a plan to move Red Hat Amphitheater to a nearby site that would involve closing South Street to traffic.
Wake County purchased a building in North Raleigh that it plans to use as a drop-in shelter for residents experiencing homelessness.
Orange
Schoolkids Records, a Franklin Street mainstay for decades, will shutter its Chapel Hill location.
North Carolina
NC Attorney General Josh Stein wants to bring back the tax-free weekend in North Carolina.
Today’s weather
Mostly clear with a high of 82 degrees.
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