Local News - November 2003

McCrory wins fifth term Stultz survives voter revolt

Published November 5, 2003

By Staff and wire

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 Pat McCrory earned another term as Charlotte’s mayor Tuesday night, turning back two challengers who had hoped his support of a $260 million downtown arena in North Carolina’s largest city would prompt voter discontent.

In Gaston County Mayor Jenny Stultz was re-elected by a large margin but three of the five incumbents lost in their bid.

Councilman Keith Tidwell, Walt Mallonee and Bill Powers lost their seats. James Watson defeated Powers by a narrow margin in a race that may call for a recount. Jeff Horne beat Tidwell and challenger Michael Mims for the Ward 1 Seat. Randy Watson defeated Malonee for the Ward 5 Seat.

With 100 percent of the precincts reporting in Charlotte, the Republican McCrory had 44,065 votes, or 57 percent, while Democrat Craig Madans received 31,043 votes, or 40 percent, according to unofficial results. Libertarian Carlton Harvey had 2 percent.

McCrory, who won a fifth two-year term, backed the publicly funded arena, which will be used by the NBA expansion Charlotte Bobcats next year. McCrory had backed another arena deal in a 2001 referendum that was rejected by city voters. The vote in part prompted the Hornets to leave town in 2002.

By winning his fifth two-year term, McCrory, 47, eclipses the mark set by former mayors Stan Brookshire and John Belk.

“Some say we’ve made history tonight, but our goal was not to make history,” he told a cheering crowd at the Fox & Hound Smokehouse and Tavern uptown. “Our goal was to continue to make this a beautiful city.”

High Point voters also returned Becky Smothers to the mayor’s office, while Cary residents chose retired banker Ernie McAlister as the successor to outgoing incumbent Glen Lang.

McAlister, a former chamber of commerce president making his first run for political office, defeated town councilwoman Julie Aberg Robison in the runoff to succeed Lang, who finished third in the Oct. 7 election. Lang, who won a four-year term in 1999, was an outspoken advocate for controlling growth in the town, which now totals more than 100,000 residents.

With 97 percent of the precincts reporting, McAlister, had 8,700 votes, or 54 percent, while Robison had 7,501 votes, or 46 percent, according to unofficial results.

McAlister had said the booming town had been adding too much debt to its balance sheet over the past four years and that revenues weren’t keeping pace with town spending.

“I think the mandate for change came four weeks ago in the preliminary (election) and over the past four weeks folks have been deciding who they wanted to lead that change,” McAlister said. “With today’s vote, that was been made clear.”

The election came a few days after the State Board of Elections ruled McAlister didn’t do anything wrong when a supporter solicited anonymous donations through e-mail. Robison initiated the complaint last month.

No anonymous contributions were made and a corrected e-mail was sent out, state elections director Gary Bartlett said last week.

Smothers, High Point’s former mayor who lost in 1999, took back the seat four years later by beating city council member Al Campbell, according to final, unofficial returns.

With all of the precincts reporting, Smothers had 7,265 votes, or 66 percent, compared to 3,734 votes, or 34 percent, for Campbell, who sought to become the city’s first black mayor.

Smothers pushed an issue-oriented campaign, with job growth as one of her top priorities. Campbell focused on his leadership and character in his run.

“Political experience is always a factor,” said Smothers after her victory. “But I didn’t present an old tired agenda. I showed an ambitious plan for High Point, especially where economic development is concerned.”

Outgoing Mayor Arnold Koonce, who unseated Smothers in 1999, decided not to run this year. While Koonce opposed the planned FedEx cargo-sorting hub at Piedmont Triad International Airport, both Smothers and Campbell back the project.

Other winners Tuesday included Durham incumbent Bill Bell, who earned a second two-year term by beating Jonathan Alston by a more than 5-to-1 margin, with 55 of 56 precincts reporting. Bell, a retired IBM executive, had the endorsements of the city’s top political groups.

Greensboro incumbent Keith Holliday defeated Bruce Ashley by receiving 80 percent of the vote, according to unofficial results. Ashley had complained Holliday hadn’t worked hard enough to revive the city’s struggling economy.

In Fayetteville, Marshall Pitts Jr. won another term by defeating Robert Anderson by a roughly 2-to-1 margin in final, unofficial results.

The proposed annexation of some 43,000 Cumberland County residents was a leading issue in Fayetteville. Anderson opposed the city’s annexation, while Pitts, the city’s first black mayor, supports orderly growth and wants to ensure city services aren’t affected by the additions.

Gastonia Mayor Jennie Stultz and Don Parrott of Greenville also won re-election Tuesday by comfortable margins.

© 2001 Lincoln Times-News  

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