bvelliquette@heraldsun.com; 918-1042
CARRBORO -- Mark Chilton was overwhelmingly voted back into office Tuesday night to serve his third term as Carrboro's mayor.
Incumbents Jacquelyn Gist and Randee Haven-O'Donnell also were returned to the Board of Aldermen, to be joined by newcomer Sammy Slade.
In the mayor's race, Chilton received 72 percent of the vote with 1,658 votes.
Challenger Brian Voyce was second in the three-person race with nearly 20 percent of the total, or 750 votes, followed by Amanda Ashley with more than 7 percent of the total, or 171 votes.
"I'm really grateful to the voters for the opportunity to serve another two years as mayor," Chilton said. "I think it's a pretty clear expression that the voters feel we're pretty much on the right track."
Chilton intends to move forward on making Carrboro a pedestrian and bicycle friendly town and preserving the feel of the downtown area that defines what Carrboro is, he said.
In the race for a seat on the Board of Aldermen, five people, including two incumbents, ran for three seats.
Jacquelyn Gist, who has been on the board for 20 years, received the highest number of votes with 1,507, followed by Slade with 1,461, and Haven-O'Donnell with 1,451.
Cook received 903 votes and Peck received 697 votes.
Voyce and Cook shared signs and a belief that the northern areas of Carrboro, where they and their neighbors live, were not fully represented on the board.
Slade, the newcomer to the board, had the support of many of the other members of the Board of Aldermen as well as Chilton.
"I think Sammy will be pretty well received," Chilton said. "I voted for him. There's no secret there. I think Sammy has some good, fresh ideas and will be someone who will probably end up challenging me on things."
One of the first things on Slade's mind is the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory.
He's hoping it will show that Carrboro, a small town, has been successful in meeting its goals.
"Carrboro has the responsibility as a municipality to serve as an example of what can be done at a small scale where people are actually doing it right," he said.
