The Orange County Board of Elections released sample ballots for the May 6 Primary. The ballots for the Carrboro district will have the following choices.

Democratic Primaries

Presidential Preference
Hillary Clinton, Mike Gravel, Barack Obama, none

US Senate
Kay Hagan, Duskin C. Lassiter, Jim Neal, Howard Staley, Marcus W. Williams

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After an organizational meeting last week at Town Hall in Carrboro, a group of citizens has formed a organization to help drum up support for the proposed 0.4 percent land transfer tax, which is on the May 6 ballot.

The group, Citizens for Schools and Parks, have launched a website at www.4schools4parks.com.

Early voting begins Thursday April 17 for the May 6 election. Unregistered but eligible voters can register at early voting sites with identification showing their name and current address. Doing this means that you can only vote at the early-voting site. Registered voters can change registration information but not party affiliation.

Vote early in Carrboro at the town hall and in Chapel Hill at the Morehead Planetarium or the Robert and Pearl Seymour Senior Center.
More information: www.co.orange.nc.us/elect/

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce, EmPOWERment Inc. and the League of Women Voters will host a North Carolina Senate District 23 Primary debate between incumbent Sen. Ellie Kinnaird and County Commissioner Moses Carey.

The debate will be at 7 p.m. at Chapel Hill Town Hall, 405 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Debate questions will be generated by the Daily Tar Heel, Chapel Hill News, Chapel Hill Herald and The Carrboro Citizen. 1360 WCHL will be broadcasting and moderating the debate.

The registration deadline for those who want to vote in the May 6 election falls on April 11.

To vote in Orange County, you must be:

• a U.S. citizen and resident of North Carolina and this county for 30 days before the election;
• at least 18 years old on or before the next election;
• not registered and not voting in any other county or state.
• if convicted of a felony, your rights of citizenship have been restored;
• if you move out of your precinct but remain within Orange County you should notify the board office in writing of your new address.

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“Ellie Fest 2008” is a celebration of state Sen. Eleanor Kinnaird’s contributions to the state of North Carolina and a rally for her re-election campaign. It will be held on Sunday, April 6 from 2 to 5 pm at the Carrboro Town Commons. Music will be provided by Tim Stambaugh, Jimmy Magoo and Saludos Compay. Paperhand Puppet Intervention will entertain and state Sen. Janet Cowell will be the featured speaker. Refreshments will be provided by Open Eye Café.

Women for Carey, a group supporting county commissioner and North Carolina Senate candidiate Moses Carey, are holding a “Rally for Moses” on April 13 at the Big Barn in Hillsborough from 4 to 6 p.m.

The event is free to the public and will feature live music by the Baron Tymas Jazz Trio, the St. Paul AME Church Men’s Choir and Billy and Anne Barnes. Recorded music will be provided by Monty Clark of the Doug Clark Hot Nuts Group. Light refreshments will be served.

The Orange County Democratic Women will sponsor a County Commissioners’ Forum at the Chapel Hill Museum at 523 East Franklin St. on Thursday, April 3 at 7:30 p.m. Orange County Commissioner Alice Gordon will explain the role and responsibility of the county commissioner and the voting changes made in electing each one. After she speaks, candidates will speak individually about their goals and entertain questions from those attending. The public is welcome to attend. Contact Betsy Russell at 644-0869 with any questions.

Why is this option before the voters?

In 2007, the state Legislature passed a law to overhaul the way Medicaid is paid. Before, counties were responsible for paying part of Medicaid expenses. Under the new law, the state takes on the county’s share of Medicaid, and in exchange counties have to reduce their sales taxes from 2.5 percent to 2 percent in 2010.

The new law gives counties an option to recover lost tax revenue. They can either raise sales taxes another 0.25 percent or put in a tax on land transfers of 0.1 percent  to 0.4 percent. Counties cannot pass either of these new taxes without voters’ approval. A special referendum has to be held and approved by the majority of voters in the county. If the referendum loses, the county cannot collect the tax.

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By Susan Dickson
Staff Writer

Six candidates have filed for election to the Orange County Schools Board of Education.

Incumbent Al Hartkopf is running for re-election, challenged by newcomers Eddie Eubanks, Steve Halkiotis, Tony McKnight, Jeff Michalski and Stan Morris.

Three seats on the board are available. School board member Dennis Whitling resigned last month, following his arrest on charges of embezzlement.

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Last Friday marked the last day of filing season for the May 6 primaries and school board election and a final-day flurry of filings resulted in a number of races turning from non-competitive to contested and perhaps the first time in county history where a husband and wife could find themselves running against each other.

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A quick Web update:

The last day of filing season for the May 6 primaries and school board election saw a number of races turn from non-competitive to contested.
Among the filings:
• Neloa Jones and Mary Wolff joined Bernadette Pelissier in the Democratic primary for the lone at-large county commissioner seat.
• Wolff’s husband, Kevin, who ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Chapel Hill last year, filed for the Republican primary for the at-large commissioner seat. He is uncontested in that race.
• The Orange County Schools Board of Education election now has six candidates vying for three seats. They are Stephen H. Halkiotis, Tony McKnight, Jeff Michalski, Eddie M. Eubanks and Al Hartkopf and Stan Morris.
More information is at the Orange County Board of Elections site.

By Kirk Ross
Staff Writer

In an otherwise quiet week of candidate filings, the race for an open judicial seat for Orange and Chatham counties expanded to three names.

Assistant District Attorney Lamar F. Proctor Jr. of Efland added his name to those seeking to succeed District Court Judge Patricia Devine, who has indicated she will not seek another term. Already signed on for the Democratic primary are Page Vernon, a Chatham County lawyer and former assistant district attorney, and Chapel Hill attorney Glenn Gerding. The judicial seat is one of three on ballot this year in District 15B, which covers Orange and Chatham counties. Incumbent judges Beverly Scarlett and Chuck Anderson, who have filed for re-election, have not drawn a primary challenger.

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By Kirk Ross
Staff Writer

Between a packed board of commissioners meeting schedule and a four-class schedule at Carolina, Orange County Commissioner Valerie Foushee said this week she plans to find time to file for re-election.

Foushee, a former chair of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School Board of Education who won a seat on the board of commissioners in 2004, said she wants to continue to work on making sure school construction and renovations proceed at a proper pace. But should she win another term, Foushee, 52, said she wants to concentrate on county responsibilities that are not as visible as schools – including affordable housing, reducing homelessness and maintaining a health and human services safety net at a time when the state’s mental health system is in crisis.

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The Chatham County Board of Elections will host a Voting Equipment Forum Feb. 27 at the Agricultural Auditorium in Pittsboro from 6 to 9 p.m. Any interested person is invited to attend. This forum provides an opportunity to view the voting equipment that is in use in Chatham County and to voice your opinions or concerns that relate to voting equipment.