Katrina's aftermath has overshadowed local political campaigns, but the Oct. 11 election is just around the corner, and candidates will surely turn up the volume.

This will especially be true in North Raleigh, which has a competitive race likely to boost turnout -- Republican Tommy Craven vs. Democrat Paul Anderson in City Council District A.

"The outcome of this election is likely to be determined in North Raleigh," Mayor Charles Meeker said in a recent rally-the-troops meeting at the Eastgate Community Center.

The officially nonpartisan races are becoming increasingly partisan, and Democratic officials at that meeting made it clear they aim to make inroads in North Raleigh. State Democratic Party Chairman Jerry Meek urged door-to-door campaigning, which he said could boost turnout by 10 to 15 percentage points.

Meek said Democrats have had problems connecting with people of faith, but he noted that Anderson is a minister.

And Keith Karlsson, chairman of the Wake County Democratic Party, talked about "funneling energy from the [national] election last year into this year."

Craven dismissed talk of tapping into discontent with national policies to energize local races.

"Last time I checked, I didn't vote on whether to send troops to Iraq," he said, chuckling.

The issues, Craven said, are on his side: "We'll talk about the convention center; we'll talk about Triangle Transit [Authority]; we'll talk about how the mayor didn't set up the road bond referendum without a tax increase."

North Raleigh has a "great quality of life" that high taxes could ruin, he said. (The mayor also talked about quality-of-life issues, but in such terms as preserving the environment.)

John Odom, another GOP council candidate, said he also is waging a hard fight, and he added: "The numbers show we're still holding strong in North Raleigh, no matter what the Democrats say. As long as we put good candidates up, we should hold on there."

We'll see. Starting today, the North Raleigh News begins following the campaigns more closely. We expect you will, too.