It’s time for the City of Durham’s primary. Here’s how to vote, if you haven’t already

Voters head to the polls in Durham on Tuesday to choose final candidates in this year’s races for mayor and City Council.

Polls for the nonpartisan municipal primary will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Voters can find their precinct’s polling place using the state’s Voter Lookup Tool.

One-stop early voting ended Saturday with 9,023 ballots cast, or roughly 4% of Durham’s 203,194 registered voters.

That was up 39% from the 6,484 early votes cast in the 2019 primary.

Each of the city’s five early-voting sites had their busiest days Saturday, the last day to vote before Tuesday.

What to vote for

The primaries will determine the top two candidates in the mayoral race and in Wards 1 and 2 on the City Council. In Ward 3, the only two candidates running automatically proceed to the Nov. 2 election.

Much of the attention has been on the closely contested mayor’s race, where seven candidates are on the ballot. Mayor Steve Schewel is not seeking re-election.

The Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People PAC, the Friends of Durham PAC and INDY Week all endorsed former judge Elaine O’Neal for mayor, along with incumbents DeDreana Freeman in Ward 1 and Mark-Anthony Middleton in Ward 2.

The Durham People’s Alliance PAC and the Durham Association of Educators endorsed City Council member Javiera Caballero in the mayor’s race and Marion T. Johnson in Ward 1. In Ward 2 the PA endorsed Middleton, while the DAE did not endorse anyone.

Antonio Jones, the chair of the Durham Committee, said candidates need endorsements and money, even in smaller races.

“To run a successful campaign in Durham, you need both. Running a race is expensive anyway, and the endorsement does not absolve you from that,” Jones said.

In the mayor’s race, O’Neal has raised the most money, $40,815, and spent $12,260.32, according to pre-primary campaign finance reports filed last week. Caballero has raised $34,058.75 and spent $4,891.39, her reports show.

In Ward 1, Johnson has raised the most money, $54,610.76, and spent the most money, $38,833.09. Freeman has raised $29,627.52 and spent $19,405.24.

Middleton, the Ward 2 incumbent who has received the most endorsements, has raised $7,798.39, and has spent $3,876.75.

General Election dates

The voter registration deadline for the Nov. 2 election is 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 8. Requests to vote by mail must be received by 5 p.m. Oct. 26.

One-stop early voting in the general election will run from Thursday, Oct. 14, to Saturday, Oct. 30.

This story was originally published October 4, 2021 at 5:04 PM.