Political hopefuls in Durham’s upcoming municipal elections got their first major endorsements last night during the People’s Alliance (PA) PAC meeting.
Over 230 PA members attended the virtual meeting, endorsing Matt Kopac in Ward 1, Shanetta Burris in Ward 2, Chelsea Cook in Ward 3, and Leonardo Williams for mayor. Candidates who attended the meeting were exiled to a breakout room while members discussed the candidates and voted for their picks.
Kopac won in a crowded field, beating out five other candidates, including incumbent city council member DeDreana Freeman. According to a PA press release, members cited Kopac’s “strengths as an active listener and experience in environmental advocacy and local governance” as well as his work in climate neutrality and youth programs. The PA endorsed Freeman when she first ran for the seat in 2017 against then-incumbent Cora Cole-McFadden, but chose Freeman’s opponent, Marion Johnson, in 2021.
In Ward 2, the PA endorsed another challenger, Shanetta Burris, who nudged out Mayor Pro Tem Mark-Anthony Middleton and Ashley Robbins. Burris has served in leadership roles with the Durham Committee, Durham CAN and North Carolina Central University, her alma mater. PA members highlighted her “strong track record in grassroots advocacy and racial justice work.” While the PA did not initially endorse Middleton in 2017, he did get their stamp of approval in 2021.
Durham’s newest council member Chelsea Cook overwhelmingly secured the PA’s endorsement for Ward 3 over challengers Terry McCann, Durant Long and Diana Medoff. During her tenure on city council, Cook, a Legal Aid attorney, has advocated for affordable housing through her decisions at City Hall.
People’s Alliance is a longstanding and influential progressive political organization, comprising the People’s Alliance Fund, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that fundraises and supports educational and service programs, the Durham People’s Alliance, a 501(c)(4) focused on issues advocacy and partnership engagement, and the People’s Alliance PAC, which prioritizes electoral politics and uplifting candidates who will further the progressive causes important to the PA.
The PAC endorsements weigh heavily amongst many Durham voters, not just PA members.
“Our focus as the pack is on providing, executing and overseeing a process that informs, empowers and is democratic,” says Nana Asante-Smith, PAC coordinator since 2017. “So that means facilitating the collection and dissemination of information for voters and members of our community who share the mission and vision that the PA has so that they can, democratically and within their autonomy, make their own decisions.”
An action team, made up of PA members from different backgrounds, gathers research on candidates and develops the questionnaire. They also host a candidate mixer that’s open to the public, as well as conduct individual interviews with candidates following the questionnaire. The team submits its recommendation to the wider membership, a process meant to provide as much information as possible before members cast their vote at the endorsement meeting. Robust debate ensues before the convening members make their picks.
Ultimately, the PAC coordinators provide the information, but it’s the members who are the driving force behind the endorsements.
For Kopac, the PA endorsement is a significant early victory, especially as a challenger. He says he feels “overwhelmed” by the support from an organization that is “rooted in deep care for the community and making a difference in people’s lives,” values that Kopac shares.
He also says that the democratic, member-driven process makes the results “unpredictable.”
“Almost every cycle, you have a situation where someone is recommended by the interview committee, and then the people who come to organize and vote select somebody else,” Kopac says.
PA members are not beholden to the recommendations of the steering committee, but they are discouraged from campaigning against the PAC’s preferred candidate once endorsements are finalized, an issue the PAC was forced to confront in 2020 when a group of rogue members circulated unsanctioned messaging in favor of someone other than the PA-approved candidate.
Still, the unpredictability gives members, and candidates, confidence in the process.
“Here’s the thing about democracy, right? Democracy does not guarantee a particular result. However, democracy, when executed properly, ensures accessibility to the process. It ensures that everyone who wishes to participate can participate,” Asante-Smith says.
Early voting begins September 18. The primary election will be held on October 7. Two mayoral candidates and six city council candidates (two from each ward) will move forward from the primary to the general election on November 4.
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