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Who wants to be Wake Forest's next mayor?
by Johnny Whitfield, Wake Weekly Associate Editor
Count Vivian Jones in. David Camacho says he's out. Rob Bridges is still on the fence. The three are seen as potential candidates for mayor in Wake Forest this fall.
Jones, the incumbent, announced Monday that she will seek a second four-year term. She could face a challenge from town commissioner Rob Bridges, who commissioned a survey last week to test the political waters. Among the questions in Bridges' survey was one asking respondents their opinions on the three potential candidates. Bridges said Monday he was still awaiting final results from the survey which targeted 400 Wake Forest voters who had voted in both of the last two elections. Those survey results won't be the only factor in his decision, Bridges said, but he wants to be sure he is in the race before he signs up. "I want to serve my hometown in the best possible capacity that I can. It's not that I'm itching to be mayor. If I can better serve the town in the role of mayor, then OK. If I can serve better as a commissioner, then that's OK too," Bridges said. A home designer by trade, Bridges is completing his first four-year term as a town commissioner. In announcing her plans to seek re-election, Jones said she is pleased with the direction the town is taking on several fronts, and says she wants to continue that effort. "I think there's still stuff I want to do," Jones said. "When I ran the first time I said I wanted to offer positive leadership and I'd like to continue that." Jones is a veteran of town politics, having served a term on the town commission before making the jump to the mayor's seat. While Jones says her name will appear on the ballot in November, another town commissioner says it's unlikely he will throw his hat into the ring. "I've been approached by a number of people in the last several weeks asking a lot of hypothetical questions," Camacho said. "At some point I might like to, but from a personal perspective, the mayor's role takes more hours to do properly than a commissioner's." Camacho said the timing of a run for mayor now doesn't suit him well. "When my daughters are off in college, I might have more time and that might be a better situation for me," Camacho said. Camacho has two teenaged daughters. Unlike Bridges, Camacho could run for mayor this year without jeopardizing his seat on the town commission. Camacho has two years remaining on his four-year term. In his survey, Bridges asked voters about 10 questions, including queries about their approval of two general obligation bonds that will be before voters May 3. According to Bridges, 54 percent of those polled favored both bonds. He also asked voters about their satisfaction with the job being done by the current board. Just over 60 percent of those questioned said they were satisfied with the job performance of the current board. Filing for mayor and two town commission seats opens July 1 and closes Aug. 5. Voters will pick the winners Nov. 8. In addition to the mayor's post and Bridges' commission seat, the commission post currently held by Chris Malone is also up for election. Malone said Tuesday he plans to seek re-election to his seat. "I appreciate the opportunity I've been given. I think we've been a very accomplished town board even though we don't always agree," Malone said.
Last Updated On: April 7, 2005
Copyright 2005 The Wake Weekly