- Orange County is divided into 2 districts for commissioners. District 1 includes Chapel Hill and Carrboro, it is roughly similar to the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School District (except it does not include anything north of I-40).
- District 2 includes Hillsborough and the rest of the county west and north of Chapel Hill/Carrboro.
- Learn more at http://orangecountync.gov/OCCLERKS/ DistElectMapV5.pdf & http://orangecountync.gov/OCCLERKS/ DistElectMapZoomV5.pdf.
How are the Commissioners elected?
- There are seven commissioners. Three from District 1, two from District 2, and two at large.
- In the primary we only vote for those in our district and at-large. In the general election, the whole county votes on all of the candidates.
- Half of the board is elected for 4-year terms each even year by a partisan primary in May and general election in November.
- If you live in District 1, you get to vote for TWO candidates, as well as at-large.
- If you live in District 2, you get to vote for ONE candidates, as well as at-large.
When and where do I vote?
- Election Day is May 8th, and polls are open from 6:30am to 7:30pm. BUT you must already be registered, and you must vote in the precinct where you are registered.
- Fortunately we also have early voting, in which anyone can register and vote at any of the locations. It starts on Monday the 23rd and runs through Saturday May 5th.
- District 1 locations:
- Carrboro Town Hall, 301 W. Main St., Carrboro (9am-5pm weekdays, 9am-1pm Sat)
- Seymour Senior Center, 2551 Homestead Rd, off MLK BLvd., Chapel Hill (noon-7pm weekdays, 9am-1pm Sat)
- Ram’s Head Dining Hall (2nd floor), Ridge Rd, UNC Campus. (11am-6pm weekdays, 9am-1pm Sat)
- District 2 locations
- Board of Elections, 209 Cameron St, Hillsborough - starts April 19th! (9am-5pm weekdays, 9am-1pm Sat)
- Mt. Zion AME Church Fellowship Building, 5124 N. Hwy 86, Cedar Grove (11am-6pm weekdays, 9am-1pm Sat)
Who are the candidates?
- At large, there is one candidate running for one seat:
- Bernadette Pelissier, incumbent
- In District 1, there are three Democratic candidates running for two seats:
- Mark Dorosin, challenger, formerly on the Carrboro Board of Aldermen, civil rights lawyer.
- Pam Hemminger, incumbent County Commissioner. Previously on the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School Board.
- Penny Rich, challenger, currently serving on the Chapel Hill Town Council.
- In District 2, there are two Democratic candiates running for one seat:
- Renee Price, challenger
- Steve Yuhasz, incumbent
- In District 2, there is also a County School Board general election (not a primary) with four candidates running for three seats:
- Steve Halkiotis, incumbent
- Tony McKnight, incumbent
- Tommy McNiel, challenger
- Lawrence Sanders, challenger
- There are also races for state legislative seats and district court judge. See our list at orangepolitics.org/elections-2012/candidates
You can also visit the Orange County Board of Elections web site to learn more at orangecountync.gov/elect/documents/2012ElectionInformation.asp
