WS Chronicle

For the past 40 years, one name has been synonymous with the Winston-Salem City Council and the Northeast Ward – Burke, Vivian Burke, that is. Although Mayor Pro Tempore Burke announced her retirement earlier this year, thanks to the voters of the Northeast Ward, the Burke name will remain on the Winston-Salem City Council.

In Tuesday’s primary election, Barbara Hanes Burke, Vivian Burke’s daughter-in-law, defeated challengers Morticia “Tee-Tee” Parmon and Keith King to fill the vacant seat left by Vivian Burke. 

Hanes Burke, who is a longtime educator, currently serves as vice chair of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education. Before that, she served as an assistant principal at Carver High School. She also helped organize the N.E.X.T Step College and Career Fair and a community volunteer literacy initiative geared toward improving 3rd grade reading scores.  

As representative for the Northeast Ward, Hanes Burke has said her priorities will be improving safety, increasing economic development, employment opportunities, and ensuring equitable access to resources. When she announced she was running for city council last December, Hanes Burke said she was eager to use her voice to bring about change in the Northeast Ward. She said, “I am eager to use my voice to continue to be a strong advocate while having an even broader impact on the community in which I live.”

Once the polls closed and ballots started being tallied, it was clear early on that Hanes Burke would come away with the victory. With 20% of the precincts reporting, Hanes Burke had already won nearly 60% of the vote. A closer look at the results shows Hanes Burke’s supporters did most of their voting during early voting. Numbers show more than 1,000 early voters chose Hanes Burke over the other two candidates, while Parmon and King received less than 500 votes during the early voting period. In the end, Hanes Burke finished with 57% of the vote.

Shortly after her victory was made official, The Chronicle caught up with Burke to get her thoughts on the win. She said she was grateful to the voters of the Northeast Ward. 

“I am excited and truly grateful to the voters of the Northeast Ward for entrusting me with their vote. I am looking forward to serving the community,” Burke said. 

Although she will not have a challenger in the general election, Barbara Hanes Burke will not officially take office until after the general election in November.