Fall elections attract 42 candidates

T. J. ROYAL

The Board of Elections was met with a flurry of activity on the last filing date Friday, as eight more candidates put their names on the ballots for Edgecombe County's municipal elections in the fall.

Princeville's Ward 4 Councilwoman Carolyn Sharpe was the last incumbent to file before noon Friday.

Delane Bryant Weathersby, Richard "Dickie" Harris and Linda C. Meeks all filed for a spot on the Conetoe Board of Commissioners. Also in Conetoe, Linda Covolo Jordan filed to challenge Mayor Linda Ingram in the fall.

In Tarboro, two more challengers filed for a spot on Town Council, Taro Knight in Ward 7, and Ervin "Dickie" Guill in Ward 5.

Finally, Freddie Bell Sr. filed Friday to be the fourth challenger to Princeville Mayor Delia Perkins.

Knight, 40, of 1118 Edmondson Ave., said that he does not see it as "actually running against" incumbent Roy Gray in Ward 7 in Tarboro. He said that he has managed "a few" of Gray's campaigns in the past and is "friends" with the town councilman.

If he is elected, this being his first time filing, he said he wants to see Town Council "look towards the future, and not look at what's been done in the past."

If elected, he said that he wants to see people in town do "whatever they can do to (take) responsibility for themselves, to make our lives better.

"Government can't do it all" to help people's economic situation within Tarboro, Knight added.

On Town Council, he said there needs to be someone who "understands the unique circumstances in Ward 7 ... (and) someone to inspire them to do better."

He added that he is aware of the "perception that we have a gang problem" in town. If elected, he wants to see activity towards "long-range outcomes" to help prevent youth from joining gangs.

"It's not because they don't have enough places to play," he added.

Guill, 58, of 1800 Springdale Lane, feels that he wants to "set my foot in the door" within Ward 5 on Town Council. A Town of Tarboro retiree after 26 years on the job as a building inspector, Guill said that "I basically know how the town runs, (and) I just think I can be an asset to the citizens of Tarboro."

He said that his concern is to see the town build back up its reserve funds, instead of using any to balance the budget. Guill added that those actions have helped keep the property tax rate from increasing in Tarboro for the past 16 years.

Guill said he had filed for election in Ward 5 previously, back in 2001.

For the Conetoe seats, Weathersby, 46, of 204 S. Railroad St., said that she and her neighbors Meeks and Jordan all filed together Friday because "there are some things we'd like to see done together."

For her, Weathersby said her reason for filing came down to the 10 percent raise the Conetoe Board of Commissioners voted for themselves back in June. If elected, she said she "definitely would" want to rescind that raise, but she also has other things in mind for Conetoe.

A 24-year veteran of Edgecombe County Public Schools now working for Pitt County Schools, Weathersby said she would like "to see our folks in Conetoe (government) work together ... to support the community and not themselves."

Meeks, 67, of 206 S. Railroad St., added that she would like to see "something in town for the senior citizens" to go to perhaps once a week. She said that her mother is mostly house-ridden and would like to see something for people like her to be able to do in Conetoe around "once a month" or so.

Meeks added that she has "nothing against" the four incumbents on the Conetoe Board of Commissioners, but feels that a 10 percent raise for themselves "was just not right, right now."

Harris, 69, of W. Church St., filed for the first time for the Conetoe Board of Commissioners Friday. He is the husband of former mayor Jean Harris.

Self-employed, owner of the Conetoe Supply Co., he said that he feels "it's just time for a change" in the town government.

He noted that he is "dissatisfied" with the office hours Conetoe's town government carries, open only two days a week in the morning hours.

"Everybody can't get off" then because they have to go to work, Harris added.

He also feels that "communications is bad between the board and the citizens" that they serve in Conetoe.

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