According to Mike Ashe, Durham County's elections director, "a new election cycle" gets started tomorrow.
Yes, we just had an election. In Durham, though, there's an election every year, and Ashe is hosting a lunchtime get-together for political-party chairpeople, their colleagues and the board of elections staff, to talk about appointing precinct officials.
"We are all working together to provide fair and honest elections," Ashe said in an emailed invitation to the press.
Durham voters are electing a mayor and three City Council members this fall. So far, the only candidate to make an official announcement is mayoral hopeful Steven Williams.
However, incumbent Mayor Bill Bell has indicated he plans to run for a fifth two-year term; incumbent council members Cora Cole-McFadden and Howard Clement have also said they will stand for re-election for their Ward 1 and 2 seats and Ward 3 incumbent Mike Woodard shows no sign of planning to quit after a single term.
Candidate filing opens at noon July 3 and closes at noon July 17. The primary election is Oct. 6 and general election Nov. 3.
