WS Chronicle

Chronicle Staff Report

The Forsyth County Democratic Party has announced the process of filling the East Ward City Council seat that will be vacated by Derwin Montgomery.

The Winston-Salem City Council intends for whoever is picked for the seat to be an interim replacement. The council plans to ask the General Assembly to pass a local act authorizing the city to hold special elections with primaries for council seats. The interim replacement would be asked not to run for the seat either in the special election or in the 2020 election, if that came first.

At the request of City of Winston-Salem Mayor Allen Joines and the City Council, the Forsyth County Democratic Party (FCDP) has scheduled an election on Sunday, Oct. 7, at 4 p.m. at the Forsyth County Democratic Headquarters to fill the seat. Any Democrat residing in the East Ward is eligible to submit his or her name for consideration and to be placed on the ballot, the Party says in a press release.

In order to fully vet and learn the views of all candidates, the Forsyth County Democratic Party will host an East Ward City Council Candidate Forum on Thursday, Oct. 4, at 7 p.m. at St. Paul United Methodist Church, 2400 Dellabrook Road in Winston-Salem. All members of the community are welcome to attend this event.

All interested persons should submit his or her name, residential address, and letter of interest to Chairperson Eric S. Ellison at ellisonlaw@earthlink.net. The deadline for submitting the candidate’s letter of interest is Wednesday, Oct. 3, at 5 p.m.

All members of the FCDP Executive Committee who reside in the East Ward will be eligible to vote in the Oct.7 election, which will be held at the Forsyth County Democratic Headquarters. All precinct leaders of the East Ward are strongly encouraged to speak to each and every Democrat of their respective precincts to inform them of the upcoming election and survey their views of what the residents of the East Ward want in City Council leadership.

Chairman Eric Ellison said on Sept. 20: “We thank the City Council for bestowing upon the Democratic Party the responsibility of filling the vacant seat. In addition to current work of preparing voters for the upcoming mid-term election, the Party will work hard to have an open and fair election process, a process that ensures that all East Ward residents have an opportunity to be heard in selecting their next City Council representative.”

FCDP Second Vice Chairman Phillip Carter and other East Ward Democrats have submitted an alternate plan to the N.C. Democratic Party (NCDP) to pick Montgomery’s replacement with precinct caucuses whose votes would be centrally tabulated by the party.  The NCDP said this week that it’s evaluating the challenge and consulting with all parties involved in hopes of finding a resolution.

The Forsyth County Democratic Party selected Montgomery to succeed Ed Hanes as the representative for the 72nd District in the N.C. General Assembly. The governor approved the party’s selection of Montgomery. Montgomery will continue to represent the East Ward until he resigns from City Council. His City Council term expires in 2020.

Forsyth County Democratic Party County website is www.fcdpnc.org.