Durham City Council candidate drops out of race, interested in potential appointment
Attorney Shelia Huggins is dropping out of the race for Durham City Council, she announced Wednesday, one day before early voting begins.
Huggins won 9.7% of the vote in last week’s primary, placing fifth among 12 candidates. She had about half the votes as the leading candidates.
The announcement leaves five people to compete for three at-large seats on the council.
Huggins declined to make any endorsements, but said she hopes to see turnout rise next month.
“Our residents aren’t necessarily disconnected from city services, but they are disconnected from the political process that determines how those services are allocated,” she said in a news conference Wednesday afternoon.
Early voting starts Thursday, and the general election is set for Nov. 7.
Here’s how each of the remaining candidates that made it through the primary fared:
- Nate Baker: 18.3%
- Javiera Caballero: 18.1% (incumbent)
- Carl Rist: 17.6%
- Khalilah Karim: 12.2%
- Monique Holsey-Hyman: 8.2% (incumbent)
Huggins, whose name will remain the ballot, was endorsed by the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People, which also supports Baker and Holsey-Hyman.
Huggins previously lost to now state Rep. Vernetta Alston in 2017. The seat today is occupied by Leonardo Williams, the frontrunner in the mayor’s race. Huggins said she would be interested in being appointed to Williams’ seat if he wins.
“I’ve been interested in that position before, so I’m not going to beat around the bush on that,” she said.
Low voter turnout in local primary
Huggins made the announcement from her office in the Orenge Building downtown, the same place she sat with family to watch the results roll in on primary night.
She hopes voter turnout will rise above the less than 12% recorded in the primary.
“According to my math, over 175,000 people did not cast a vote in the primary,” Huggins said. “They didn’t participate in a process that impacts the water they drink, the first responder services that are provided to them, and the parks and recreation facilities that some of them choose to use.”
“A choice not to vote is is definitely a choice,” she added later.
This story was originally published October 18, 2023 at 4:26 PM.
