Incumbents Roll to Re-Election in Municipal Elections

GOVERNMENT

By Adam Powell
Correspondent

Turnout was low in the 2025 municipal elections in Orange County, with only 15.16% of eligible voters—just 11,685 out of 77,070 registered voters—casting ballots.

Once the early voting and poll voting totals were tabulated on the evening of November 4, it proved to be a great night for local incumbents. Each of the reigning mayors and council members in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and surrounding communities will remain in office for fresh terms.

But it was also a good night for several local political newcomers, who will be assuming seats on the Town Councils in Chapel Hill and Carrboro, as well as the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education.

Local mayors run unopposed for second terms

Chapel Hill mayor Jessica Anderson ran unopposed in her quest for another term as head of the town’s local government. She received 5,714 votes (95.06%), with 297 write-in votes (4.94%) in Orange County. In Durham County, she received 325 votes (91.81%) with 29 write-in votes cast. 

This will be Anderson’s second two-year term as Chapel Hill Mayor, following her service on the Town Council from 2015 to 2023.

In the race for Carrboro Mayor, Barbara Foushee easily won another term, taking 2,774 total votes (95.75%). Joe H. Lloyd Jr. received 94 votes (3.24%), while write-ins gained another 29 votes.

Foushee has been involved in politics in Carrboro since 2017, when she won her first term on the Carrboro Town Council. Following re-election in 2021, Foushee successfully ran for Mayor in 2023 and will be going into her third two-year term upon being sworn in again.

Incumbents beaten by newcomers, will return to Chapel Hill Council, CHCCS Board of Education

Although incumbent Chapel Hill Town Council members Camille Berry and Paris Miller-Foushee will be returning to their seats, both were beaten in the polls by newcomers Louie Rivers III and Wes McMahon, who will be joining them on the local board later this fall.

Rivers, a former member of the Chapel Hill Planning Commission, led in the final voting with 5,204 ballots cast in his name (21.28%) in Orange County. Rivers also received 302 votes in Durham County – second-most among candidates (21.74%) – for a final total of 5,506 votes. Rivers is a professor of forestry and environmental resources at North Carolina State University and will bring a planning and infrastructure-minded background to his new role.

McMahon, who currently serves on the Chapel Hill Planning Commission, placed second behind Rivers, earning 5,127 votes in Orange County (20.97%) and 281 votes in Durham County (20.23%) for a combined total of 5,408 votes. McMahon is a champion of greenways and walkability.

Rivers and McMahon will be replacing Karen Stegman, who resigned from the Town Council this summer, and Adam Searing, who chose not to run for re-election. Searing made a go at Mayor in the fall of 2023, losing out to Anderson.

Berry placed third in the balloting, earning 5,094 votes (20.83%) in Orange County and 303 votes in Durham County (21.81%) for a total of 5,397 votes to receive a third term on the Chapel Hill Town Council. First elected in the fall of 2021, Berry has promoted affordable housing and walkability throughout her time on the council.

Miller-Foushee received 4,774 votes (19.52%) in Orange County and 254 votes in Durham County (18.29%) for a total of 5,028 votes to place fourth and earn a third term on the council. A local non-profit board member and assistant director for the Center for Muslim Life at Duke University, Miller-Foushee has made affordable housing a cornerstone of her candidacy and local government endeavors.

Another former member of the Chapel Hill Planning Commission who made a run for a Town Council seat this fall, Erik Valera, placed fifth in the race, earning 4,016 votes (16.42%) in Orange County and 232 votes in Durham County (16.70%) for a total of 4,248 votes, while write-in votes gained another 254 tallies.

A political newcomer also prevailed in the race for the three available seats on the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education. Melinda Manning, an Assistant Dean of Students at UNC-Chapel Hill who has served as a classroom teacher, adjunct faculty member, and mental health First Aid instructor, received more votes than incumbents Riza Jenkins and George Griffin, though both Jenkins and Griffin will be returning to their respective sets for new terms.

Manning earned 9,146 votes (33.83%) to edge out Jenkins, who received 8,903 votes (32.93%) for the top vote total. When she is sworn in later this fall, Manning will assume the seat of outgoing Board of Education member Michael H. Sharp, who chose not to run for another term. Jenkins is the current Vice-Chair of the CHCCS Board.

Griffin, who has served as the Board Chair throughout 2025, placed third in the voting, recording 8,735 votes (32.31%). Write-in votes earned another 249 tallies (0.92%).

Incumbents, former Poet Laureate earn seats on Carrboro Town Council 

There was absolutely no drama in the battle for the three open positions on the Carrboro Town Council, as the two incumbents who filed – Cristobal Palmer and Danny Nowell – joined political newcomer Fred Joiner in snagging the trio of elected spots.

Palmer won the highest number of votes, with 2,573 (34.12%), while Nowell came in second with 2,482 votes (32.91%). Joiner, the former Poet Laureate of Carrboro from 2019 to 2022, placed third, earning 2,369 votes (31.41%). All three men will join returning Council members Catherine Fray, Jason Merrill, and Eliazar Arturo Posada-Orozco Jr. when they are formally sworn in later this year.

Incumbents re-elected with ease in Hillsborough, Mebane

There were familiar themes for incumbent candidates in the local towns of Hillsborough and Mebane, as incumbents ran unopposed and earned easy re-election victories. Hillsborough Mayor Mark Bell drew no challengers this fall and earned 696 votes (98.31%) to gain a second term in his current role. Bell previously served as a Hillsborough Town Commissioner from 2015 to 2023 prior to his election as Mayor.

Likewise, Hillsborough Board of Commissioners members Kathleen Ferguson and Robb English ran unopposed, and each surged to re-election victories. Ferguson received 646 total votes (49.50%), while English, the town’s Mayor Pro Tempore, earned 639 votes (48.97%). Write-ins earned another 20 votes (1.53%) in the race.

In Mebane, incumbent Montrena Hadley got the highest total of votes, with 183 in Orange County (35.88%). Tim Bradley placed second with 126 votes in Orange County (24.71%), while another incumbent – Jonathan White – placed third with 120 Orange County votes (23.53%).

Hadley, a former member of the Mebane Planning Department, earned her second term, having first been elected in 2021. Meanwhile, Bradley, who has been on the Mebane City Council since the fall of 1993, was elected to his ninth consecutive term. White, like Hadley, was elected to his second term with Tuesday night’s results.

Two non-incumbents technically ran in Mebane this cycle, as Blair Helms and Rick Thomas both filed and qualified for the November 4 ballot. But neither Helms nor Thomas actively campaigned for the available seats, and told residents and media sources that they weren’t running after all. Helms received 40 votes (7.84%), while Thomas earned 39 votes (7.65%). Write-ins received an additional two votes (0.39%).

Adam Powell has been a correspondent for The Local Reporter since 2023. A 2001 graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, Powell has served as managing editor of multiple local publications, including the News of Orange County, the Mebane Enterprise, the Caswell Messenger, and the ACC Sports Journal. Powell has won more than 20 North Carolina Press Association Awards throughout his journalism career for Excellence in Education Reporting, Excellence in Sports Columns and Features, and Excellence in Video Production. He has also been recognized by the North Carolina School Public Relations Association (NCSPRA) for Excellence in Education Writing and for his newsletters representing Rockingham County Schools and the North Carolina Cyber Academy. The author of four books. Adam currently resides in Mebane with his wife Julie and children Colt and Jenna. This reporter can be reached at:Information@TheLocal Reporter.press