RALEIGH, NC (Oct. 11, 2022) – Habitat Wake asked local candidates to share their stances on affordable housing, a key issue heading into the November 8 election. This Local Candidate Questionnaire gives voters a chance to hear directly from the candidates on the steps they’ll take to address the affordable housing crisis in our community.
Wake County faces a shortage of nearly 60,000 housing units affordable to families with low to moderate incomes. One in four local families is cost-burdened, meaning they pay too much of their income toward housing at the expense of other necessities such as groceries, healthcare and education.
The questionnaire asks candidates to share their plans to address the most pressing issues related to affordable housing, including rapid growth, displacement, rent prices, property taxes, and racial equity.
“This election comes at a critical time for affordable housing locally.” said Jacquie Ayala, Director of Advocacy at Habitat Wake. “We know that voters are feeling and seeing the negative impacts of rising housing costs, so we want to make sure they have housing in mind at the ballot box.”
Habitat Wake has an ambitious vision to create a world in which everyone has a safe, affordable place to live. Through our non-partisan advocacy work, we support policies and initiatives that expand affordable housing locally and beyond. We look forward to continuing to work alongside elected officials, volunteers, and community partners to increase affordable housing.
All candidates running for Wake County Board of Commissioners and Raleigh City Council were extended the opportunity to fill out the questionnaire. The following candidates responded:
Chanel N. Harris (Wake County Board of Commissioners District 1)
Donald Mial (Wake County Board of Commissioners District 1)
Mark McMains (Wake County Board of Commissioners District 2)
Matt Calabria (Wake County Board of Commissioners District 2)
Cheryl F. Stallings (Wake County Board of Commissioners District 3)
Irina Comer (Wake County Board of Commissioners District 3)
Vickie Adamson (Wake County Board of Commissioners District 7)
Mary-Ann Baldwin (City of Raleigh Mayor)
Terrance "Truth" Ruth (City of Raleigh Mayor)
DaQuanta Copeland (City of Raleigh Mayor)
John Odom (Raleigh City Council At-large)
Jonathan Melton (Raleigh City Council At-large)
Joshua Bradley (Raleigh City Council At-large)
Portia W. Rochelle (Raleigh City Council At-large)
Anne S. Franklin (Raleigh City Council At-large)
Whitney Hill (Raleigh City Council District A)
Catherine (Cat) Lawson (Raleigh City Council District A)
Jakob Lorberblatt (Raleigh City Council District B)
Frank Pierce (Raleigh City Council District B)
Megan Patton (Raleigh City Council District B)
Minu Lee (Raleigh City Council District B)
Frank T. Fields III (Raleigh City Council District C)
Wanda Hunter (Raleigh City Council District C)
Corey Branch (Raleigh City Council District C)
Todd Kennedy (Raleigh City Council District D)
Jane Harrison (Raleigh City Council District D)
Rob Baumgart (Raleigh City Council District D)
Jennifer Truman (Raleigh City Council District D)
Christina Jones (Raleigh City Council District E)
David Knight (Raleigh City Council District E)
Habitat Wake would like to thank all the candidates that took time to provide their responses on such critical issues that Wake County residents are facing. If you would like to stay up to date on all the work Habitat Wake is doing to advocate for affordable housing sign up to join the Advocacy Ambassadors.
We also would like to remind you that October 14 is the deadline to register for the General Election on November 8 and one-stop registration and early voting begins across North Carolina on October 20.