Sammy Slade to join aldermen

First-time candidate Sammy Slade will join a familiar group on the Carrboro Board of Aldermen after Tuesday’s elections.

Slade, endorsed by former mayor pro tem John Herrera, claimed a seat with the second-highest number of votes. Carrboro residents also re-elected incumbents Jacquie Gist and Randee Haven-O’Donnell.

Gist, Slade and Haven-O’Donnell won with 24.84, 24.09 and 23.92 percents of the vote, respectively.

Sharon Cook and Tim Peck, who did not win, garnered 14.89 percent and 11.49 percent of the vote, respectively.

A first-time board member and the only Latino candidate, Slade isn’t a newcomer to Carrboro issues.

Slade was chairman of the local living economy task force and co-founded the Carrboro Community Garden Coalition.

Mayor Mark Chilton said he wants the Board of Aldermen to appoint Slade to fill Herrera’s empty seat this month instead of waiting until December when Slade would be sworn in.

Slade said he supports local food production and wants to continue policies that limit local police officers checking for immigration status.

“Sammy’s got fresh ideas and will probably end up challenging us on some things,” Chilton said.

Gist has been a board member since 1989 and is a career counselor at University Career Services.

“In 20 years, people get to know you,” Gist said. “In this election, people who were born after I was elected voted for me.”

To support the economy, she wants to encourage residents to invest more in local banks. She also wants to complete Carrboro’s Greenway system and find more parking for downtown businesses, she said.

Haven-O’Donnell, a teacher at Durham Academy, was elected first in 2005 and currently serves as the mayor pro tem.

“It’s amazing what you can achieve when you put your heart and mind to it,” she said.

Haven-O’Donnell said she wants to protect Carrboro’s rural buffer and supports the creation of a workforce station where day laborers can gather.

“I’m delighted to continue to serve the town of Carrboro,” she said.

“I love the town of Carrboro. I love my work.”

Although he did not win, Peck said he has learned a lot since the election and won’t let the results get him down.

“I sort of got my name out there, became a public figure,” he said.

Cook, a member of the Town Planning Board, ran for the board two years ago and said she is disappointed with a second loss.

“We worked really hard,” she said.

“We ran a really good, clean campaign.”

She is unsure if she will run again but thinks it’s important for residents to get involved in local government, she said.

“I was just disappointed that more people didn’t come out and vote,” Cook said.



Staff writers Kelly Poe, Emily Stephenson, Matt Bewley and Daixi Xu contributed reporting.

Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.