Durham City Council Ward 3 Candidate Support Meeting – January 11, 2024
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Durham City Council Ward 3 Candidate Support Meeting – January 11, 2024
The City Council held a public meeting on January 11, 2024, from 7:00 PM to 9:09 PM, to hear supporters of the four candidates vying for the vacant Ward 3 seat. Each candidate was allotted 30 minutes for their supporters to speak. No council discussion or vote occurred during this meeting. The council will make the final appointment at a special meeting on Tuesday morning and swear in the new member that evening.
Public Comments & Testimony
Chastin Swain
- Five supporters spoke, including Cooper Norris, Jennifer Martin, Natalia Wheedy, Chris Dreps (virtually), and Jordan Lopez (virtually). They highlighted Swain’s commitment to environmental justice, community organizing, legal background, and ability to bridge diverse perspectives. Supporters emphasized his dedication to sustainability, walkable neighborhoods, and affordable housing. Jordan Lopez described Swain’s work ethic and intentional problem-solving in his role at the Governor’s Rule Initiative.
Sheila Huggins
- Seven supporters spoke, including Daniel Patterson, Brenda Pollock, Ryan Jenkins, Thelma Glenn White, Patrick, Anita Daniels, Shea Ramirez, and Emerson Kirby (her daughter). They stressed Huggins’s long record of community service, legal expertise, and experience navigating city issues. Speakers noted her consistent involvement even after an unsuccessful 2017 run, her focus on career development and job training, and her ability to advocate for families and small businesses. Emerson Kirby shared personal anecdotes about her mother’s dedication to meetings and community.
Chelsea Cook
- Eleven supporters spoke, including Willet Cruz, Dr. Sophie Mayer, Scott Holmes, Savannah Living Good, Carol Arietta, Cedric Craig, Julieta Gertzko, Lillian Horns, and Jamie Lee (virtually). They highlighted Cook’s work as a Legal Aid attorney fighting evictions, her deep understanding of housing and homelessness, and her relentless advocacy for marginalized residents. Supporters described her as a connector, an empathetic listener, and a persistent community volunteer. They praised her ability to build consensus and her commitment to equity.
Amanda Borer
- Eight supporters spoke, including Leslie Strax, Kizia Scales, Marla Johnson, Leanne Clark Shirley, Eleanor McConnell, Dean Fox, Susan Johns, and Mary Gouwe. They emphasized Borer’s leadership in aging services, her work with direct care workforce and dementia-inclusive initiatives, and her collaborative problem-solving. Supporters noted her experience at Charles House, her policy fellowship in DC, and her ability to bring people together. They highlighted her compassion, analytical thinking, and commitment to intergenerational equity.
Discussion Items
- Mayor Williams announced that the council will use a special meeting on Tuesday morning to discuss the selection process, referencing past use of ranked-choice voting. He noted the final vote will occur at that meeting. Council discussed logistics: all applicants should be present Tuesday at 9:30 AM; the selected candidate will be sworn in at 7:00 PM that same day during the regular council meeting.
Key Outcomes
- No vote was taken at this meeting.
- The council will hold a special meeting on Tuesday morning at 9:30 AM to deliberate and vote on the Ward 3 appointment.
- The selected candidate will be sworn in at the 7:00 PM council meeting that evening.
Meeting Transcript
The time is now seven PM. We will uh wait until I get quorum. Yeah, absolutely. You you did great. I didn't I didn't have to do this at all, man, and this at all. All right, I've heard me. Thank you for being here at City Hall. This is a meeting where uh this is probably the only meeting you see politicians just shut up their mouth and listen. Um this is uh the uh the candidate support meeting for individuals and Madam Clerk. Will you please call the role? Mayor Williams. I'm here, Mayor Pro Tem Middleton. I'm here. Councilmember Baker. Here, Councilmember Caballero, Councilmember Freeman, President, Councilmember Reese. President. Thank you. All right, at this time, um Madam Clerk, are these okay? I see. Yeah, better. At this time, we will now receive public comment for the following ward three candidates. And starting first is Chastin Swain. Uh, just for awareness, public awareness. We will excuse me. We will only hear from candidate supporters tonight, uh, not the actual candidate. And what I'll do is I'll start with online. And uh I have and we have 30 minutes. All right, thank you. All right, so we'll start first. Uh Jordan Lopez. Virtual. Jordan, can you hear me? Mr. Mayor, Mr. Lopez is not in the queue. No worries, I'll come back. All right, so in person. Cooper Norris. I and just a reminder, each each candidate has 30 minutes for their supporters. One person talks 30 minutes, or you have 30 people talk one minute. It's it's up to how you all do it. You do not have to use the entire 30 minutes. You may begin. Good evening, council. My name is Cooper Norris. I'm a constituent of Ward 3, and I'm before you tonight to speak in support of my friend Chastin Swain's appointment to the City Council. Chaston and I met in 2017, both when we were starting our first year of law school at Carolina. Seven years ago, I'm sure I hoped, but I never would have dared guess just how lasting and impactful our friendship would be. We bonded over our shared value of public interest law that led us both to apply and ultimately to attend law school. And from there, our friendship soon bled over into many different faucets of life, both professional and personal.
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