Raleigh is the capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina,after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeast,the 41st-most populous city in the U.S.,and the largest city of the Research Triangle metro area. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees,which line the streets in the heart of the city. The city covers a land area of 148.54 square miles (384.7 km2). The U.S. Census Bureau counted the city's population as 467,665 at the 2020 census. It is one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States. It is ranked as a sufficiency-level world city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network. The city of Raleigh is named after Sir Walter Raleigh,who established the now-lost Roanoke Colony in present-day Dare County.
Chapel Hill is a town in Orange and Durham County,North Carolina,United States. Its population was 61,960 in the 2020 census,making Chapel Hill the 17th-most populous municipality in the state. Chapel Hill and Durham make up the Durham-Chapel Hill,NC Metropolitan Statistical Area,which had an estimated population of 608,879 in 2023. When it's combined with Raleigh,the state capital,they make up the corners of the Research Triangle,which had an estimated population of 2,368,947 in 2023.
Erwin is a town that is located in the eastern part of Harnett County,North Carolina,United States,located approximately 5 miles (8.0 km) from Dunn and approximately 20 miles (32 km) from Fayetteville. The city is a part of the Dunn,NC Micropolitan Statistical Area,which is additionally a part of the greater Raleigh-Durham-Cary,NC CSA,according to the United States Census Bureau. Currently,the city has a population of 5,270 as of the 2020 census. Its current mayor is Randy Baker,who has been the mayor since being elected on May 17,2022.
Apex is a town in Wake County,North Carolina,United States. At its southern border,Apex encompasses the community of Friendship. In 1994,the downtown area was designated a historic district,and the Apex train depot,built in 1867,is designated a Wake County landmark. The depot location marks the highest point on the old Chatham Railroad,hence the town's name. The town motto is "The Peak of Good Living".
Durham is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County and Wake County. With a population of 283,506 in the 2020 census,Durham is the fourth-most populous city in North Carolina and the 71st-most populous city in the United States. The city is located in the east-central part of the Piedmont region along the Eno River. Durham is the core of the four-county Durham–Chapel Hill metropolitan area,which had an estimated population of 608,879 in 2023. The Office of Management and Budget also includes Durham as a part of the Raleigh–Durham–Cary combined statistical area,commonly known as the Research Triangle,which had an estimated population of 2,368,947 in 2023.
Thomas A. Stith III is a North Carolina political figure. Stith was a member of the city council of Durham,North Carolina from 1999 to 2007. More recently,he has served as Program Director for Economic Development at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise,and then as North Carolina district director for the federal Small Business Administration. In December 2020,Stith was selected as the next president of the North Carolina Community College System.
Saint Augustine's University is a private historically black Christian college in Raleigh,North Carolina. It was founded by Episcopal clergy in 1867 for the education of freed slaves.
The Durham Performing Arts Center opened November 30,2008 as the largest performing arts center in the Carolinas at a cost of $48 million. The DPAC hosts over 200 performances a year including touring Broadway productions,high-profile concert and comedy events,family shows and the American Dance Festival. Operated under the direction of Nederlander and Professional Facilities Management (PFM),DPAC has twice been listed as the #1 performing arts organization in the Triangle region by the Triangle Business Journal. Construction of the DPAC was part of a larger plan to redevelop downtown Durham by the Capitol Broadcasting Company,and includes other nearby properties such as the American Tobacco Historic District,the Durham Bulls Athletic Park,and the studios of the CBC-owned Fox 50 TV station.
Marshall B. Pitts Jr. is an American lawyer and politician. He served as the Mayor of Fayetteville,North Carolina,for two terms from 2001 until 2005. Pitts was the city's first African-American mayor.
The 2016 North Carolina lieutenant gubernatorial election took place on November 8,2016,to elect the Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina,concurrently with the 2016 U.S. presidential election,as well as elections to the United States Senate and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Primary elections were held March 15.
James Michael Woodard is an American politician who has served in the North Carolina Senate from the 22nd district since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party,he represents most of Durham County.
Stephen M. Schewel is an American politician,businessman,and academic. A Democrat,he is the former Mayor of Durham,North Carolina and formerly served on the Durham City Council and as the Vice Chair of the Durham Public School Board. Schewel is also a faculty member at Duke University's Sanford School of Public Policy and a former faculty member at North Carolina Central University. He founded the weekly newspaper Indy Week in 1983,and served as its president until he sold the paper in 2012. In 2010 he co-founded the Hopscotch Music Festival.
The 2019 mayoral election in the city of Raleigh,North Carolina,was held on Tuesday,October 8,2019. Former City Council member Mary-Ann Baldwin placed first in the election,followed by attorney Charles Francis. Although Baldwin did not receive a majority of the vote,Francis declined to seek a runoff,leaving Baldwin elected as the city's next mayor.
Robert Wensell "Wense" Grabarek served as mayor of Durham,North Carolina from 1963 to 1971. Greeted upon entering office with mass civil rights demonstrations,Grabarek was credited with striking a tone of moderation. He established the "Durham Interim Committee," composed of two black and nine white members,with a mandate to "resolve and reconcile" racial differences. Over the next few months,segregation ended at most of Durham's restaurants,hotels and movie theaters,swimming pools,libraries,the chamber of commerce,and the Jaycees. Grabarek also served on the Durham City Council from 1957 to 1961.
Vernetta Alston is an American Democratic politician and attorney. She served on the Durham City Council from 2017 to 2020,when she succeeded MaryAnn Black in the North Carolina House of Representatives.
The 2021 Durham,North Carolina mayoral election was held on November 2,2021,to elect the next mayor of Durham,North Carolina.
Elaine M. O'Neal is an American attorney,academic administrator,judge,and politician who served as the mayor of Durham,North Carolina from 2021 to 2023. O'Neal is the city's first female African-American mayor. Prior to serving as mayor,O'Neal was the first woman appointed as chief district court judge in Durham County and the first woman North Carolina Superior Court judge in Durham County. She served as an interim dean of the North Carolina Central University School of Law from 2018 to 2020.
Javiera Caballero is a Chilean-born American politician and former educator. She is the first Latina member of the Durham City Council,having been appointed to the council in 2018. In 2021,she had an unsuccessful campaign to run for Mayor of Durham,but lost to Elaine O'Neal.
The 2023 Durham mayoral election was held on November 7,2023,to elect the mayor of Durham,North Carolina. Incumbent mayor Elaine O'Neal,the first black woman elected to the position,chose to retire after a single two-year term.
