Reality TV star wants to enter Wake County politics

Ronnie Shirley, star of the realty television series “Lizard Lick Towing,” has never voted in a Wake County election.

“I never felt like I could make a difference in the political realm,” Shirley said. “When you look (and ask) does one person’s voice matter, it sure doesn’t seem that way in the last 15 to 20 years.”

Now the 45-year-old is running as an unaffiliated candidate for the District 6 seat on the Wake County Board of Commissioners. He and his wife, Amy, announced the campaign during a more than 20-minute Facebook Live video Tuesday evening.

“Lizard Lick Towing,” which aired on TruTV from 2011 to 2014, featured the Shirleys as they ran the Lizard Lick towing and repossession company near Wendell. At least one spin-off, “Ronnie’s Redneck Road Trip,” aired last year in the United Kingdom.

Shirley said he knows some people are interested in seeing a new show about him, but he felt led by his faith to put it on hold and run for political office. He will challenge Democratic incumbent Greg Ford for the seat. Republican challenger David Blackwelder has also filed to run.

“I’m not saying anything bad (about Ford),” Shirley said. “I don’t sling mud unless I’m in my Dodge truck. I’m not saying he’s not a great person or does a great job, but I think I can benefit the county in the sixth district.”

He said finding common ground and supporting schools and the foster care system are all “big things on my heart.” But he said he mostly wants to listen to other people to find out what Wake County needs.

“I stand for the guy and girl who didn’t have a way out,” he said. “I stand for the people who don’t have a voice because they feel like they are too small to be heard. And I stand for the people who have large voices. I stand for anti-diversity. That is the best thing I can say. Because I am so tired of seeing all the diversity keeping people from meshing back together and making us a nation of one. It’s almost like you have to choose one side or another and that’s not how it should be.”

Shirley said he would listen to both sides of every issue.

“Part of the problem we have in politics now and the problem of getting policies and changes is there are two iron walls,” he said. “And a lot of the people in the two iron walls never communicate fully. They stick to one train of thought, on both sides, and it’s hard to have great communication. That’s why you always see stuff getting gridlock, why you see stuff not passing.”’

To appear on the ballot, he must collect the signatures of more than 28,000 registered Wake County voters by the May 8 primary. Shirley said he will soon launch a campaign website and look for volunteers. The general election is Nov. 6.

All current members of the Wake Board of Commissioners are Democrats. An unaffiliated candidate hasn’t appeared on the ballot in at least a decade, said Gary Sims, director of Wake’s Board of Elections.

This story was originally published February 28, 2018 at 1:29 PM with the headline "Reality TV star wants to enter Wake County politics."