Now that Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx says he won’t seek re-electionthis fall, speculation has begun about who might replace him.
Former Republican City Council Member Edwin Peacock has formally announced he’ll run for the job. On Friday, Democratic state Senator Malcolm Graham of Charlotte used his Twitter account to tell followers he’s considering a run. Democrat and Mayor Pro Tem Patrick Cannon also has told reporters he's interested.
The Charlotte Observer reports that at least a dozen people are being mentioned, including former Mecklenburg County Commission chair Jennifer Roberts, former Republican Mayoral candidate John Lassiter and other city council members. Candidate filing for the fall elections won’t begin until July.
POLICE INVESTIGATE SHOOTING DEATH
Charlotte Mecklenburg Police are investigating a shooting death overnight in north Charlotte. Police and Medic were called to an apartment on Season Grove Lane, off Mount Holly-Huntersville Road, just after 3 a.m., where they found a man dead of a gunshot wound. He hasn’t been identified. Police say he apparently forced his way into an apartment where he confronted a male resident and a female guest. The shooting happened when the two men struggled over a weapon. The resident received a minor gunshot wound in his hand. Anyone with information is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 704-334-1600.
EX-BUSH AIDE DAVID KUO DIES AT 44
Friends and colleagues are mourning this weekend over the death of David Kuo, a conservative Christian who helped to lead President George W. Bush's faith-based initiative, but later criticized the effort. Kuo died Friday in Charlotte at age 44, after a decade fighting brain cancer. Kuo was a policy adviser and speechwriter for conservative Republicans and joined the Bush administration in 2001 as deputy of the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. But he left the White House in 2003. In a book, he described the Bush White House as having sought political gain through the manipulation of religious faith and called the initiative a "sad charade." (See the Washington Post obituary, "J. David Kuo, onetime leader of Bush’s faith-based initiative, dies at 44")
2 DIE IN WEEKEND WRECKS
Two people have died this weekend in separate wrecks on Charlotte-area roads. 27-year-old Brandon Bryant died Friday night when he lost control of his Nissan Altima on Oakdale Road, and collided with an oncoming Toyota pickup. Two passengers in the pickup – a woman and a 7-year-old child - were hospitalized with serious injuries.
On Saturday morning, a 35-year-old woman diedwhen her car collided head-on with a pickup truck on Highway 73 near the Cowan’s Ford Dam in north Mecklenburg. Kristy Miller was pronounced dead at the scene. The wreck also hurt a five-month-old boy who was in an infant safety seat in her car, as well as the driver of the pickup. Their injuries were described as minor.
Police are investigating both crashes.
FIRE DESTROYS BUILDING AT BREWERY SITE
A fire in Asheville Friday destroyed at least one building on the future site of the New Belgium Brewery. The Asheville Citizen-Times says the fire was reported about 11 p.m. and appeared to be in two structures on the site. One fire official called the blaze "definitely suspicious" and said it was under investigation. It was the second suspicious fire last week in Asheville. Another blaze damaged the old Asheville Cotton Mill nearby.
