Mayoral hopeful Williams sends first fundraising letter

Raleigh physician Randall Williams will hold a pair of campaign events this month to formally open his bid for Raleigh mayor.

Williams plans a kickoff Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at Broughton High School. He'll host his first fundraiser Aug. 30 at the home of Joe and Sarah Knott, with co-sponsorships starting at $500 per couple.

(Knott is a Raleigh attorney who ran in 2004 as the Republican candidate for N.C. Attorney General.)

In an Aug. 4 letter to friends and supporters, Williams talked about his background as an obstetrician and gynecologist, and noted his involvement in taking World War II veterans to Washington, DC as part of the Flight of Honor project.

"I have helped lots of patients deliver babies but like most of you, I am not a politician," he wrote. "At the same time, I think there is a place in public service for people who work hard and care for others."

Williams described himself as a fiscal conservative who would keep taxes low for businesses. "The economic reality is that we need a government that is helpful but does not overreach," he said in the letter.

"An energized private business sector is the answer to many ills," he said.

Williams called for Raleigh to embrace its role as a global city, but he also sounded a word of caution about the city's recent population boom.

"Our growth has strained our ability to work with each other for the common good," he wrote. "And that inability to work together has diminished all of us."

Williams becomes the third candidate in the race to succeed Mayor Charles Meeker, who announced in May that he wouldn't seek a record sixth consecutive term.

The two previously declared candidates are Councilwoman Nancy McFarlane, who will run as an independent, and real estate executive Billie Redmond, a Republican.