Saturday, November 9, 2024

Have a question for a municipal election candidate? Ask it at our forum

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 7, with early voting for the municipal elections taking place Oct. 19 – Nov. 4. (Port City Daily/File)

SOUTHEASTERN N.C. — During last year’s election season, Port City Daily, WECT and WHQR came together to host candidate forums ahead of the 2022 midterm elections. The goal: to engage candidates on topics that face southeastern North Carolina voters.

READ MORE: Here’s who filed for the 2023 municipal elections in the tri-county region

This year the three news outlets are rallying again to bring voter questions to the forefront of candidates at two forums scheduled at Cape Fear Community College’s Union Station auditorium.

The first, to take place Tuesday, Oct. 17, will feature four Carolina Beach mayoral candidates and three council contenders, as well as four Kure Beach commissioner candidates. Wrightsville Beach Board of Aldermen candidates declined to attend the forum.

The second forum, slated for Monday, Oct. 23, will focus on City of Wilmington council candidates, including two incumbents and five challengers.

Readers can submit questions for candidates by clicking here; just include your name, which candidate/election you’re asking about and fill in up to three questions. 

Both forums will begin at 6:30 p.m. and be moderated by Jon Evans of WECT. In addition to community questions, there also will be inquiries generated and asked by the outlets’ journalists, including Brenna Flanagan, Peter Castagno and Amy Passaretti Willis from PCD, Rachel Keith and Kelly Kenoyer from WHQR, and Zach Solon from WECT.

Port City Daily has begun to run candidate profiles — including Brunswick and Pender counties — ahead of the election, to be tracked here. After every interview goes live, the candidate profiles will be repackaged and organized by county to republish ahead of Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 7.

WHQR has begun running candidate interviews as part of its segment “The Newsroom,” which airs weekly here.

A few dates for voters to consider as the election season approaches:

  • Absentee ballots can be requested through Oct. 31 and must be returned Nov. 7 (or post-marked as such).
  • Registration to vote will be open until Oct. 13; afterward, according to the state board of elections, same-day registration will be available only during one-stop early voting.
  • Early voting begins Oct. 19 and remains open through Nov. 4 (3 p.m.).
  • Election Day polls open Nov. 7, 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. 

Once early voting closes, voters will need to go to the location listed on their registration cards, verified here. Sample ballots for the upcoming election can be accessed by filling in voter registration info here.

A photo ID is required to cast a ballot in 2023; a free ID can be obtained from the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles or from a county board of elections office. Voters who attempt to cast a ballot without an ID on Election Day will be asked to fill out an ID Exception Form, available at their polling station.  

To vote early in New Hanover County, visit the Northeast Library (1241 Military Cutoff Road). From Oct. 28 to Nov. 4, voters can also go to CFCC Health Sciences and Learning Center (415 Second St.), Carolina Beach Town Hall (1121 Lake Park Blvd.) and the NHC Senior Center (2222 S. College Road).

Early ballots can be cast in neighboring counties at:

  • The Brunswick County Cooperative Extension (in lieu of the Board of Elections) at 25 Referendum Drive, Building N, in Bolivia
  • The Pender County Cooperative Extension Auditorium (in lieu of the Board of Elections) at 801 S. Walker St. in Burgaw

Have comments or tips? Email info@portcitydaily.com

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Shea Carver
Shea Carver
Shea Carver is the editor in chief at Port City Daily. A UNCW alumna, Shea worked in the print media business in Wilmington for 22 years before joining the PCD team in October 2020. She specializes in arts coverage — music, film, literature, theatre — the dining scene, and can often be tapped on where to go, what to do and who to see in Wilmington. When she isn’t hanging with her pup, Shadow Wolf, tending the garden or spinning vinyl, she’s attending concerts and live theater.

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