James "Smuggie" Mitchell

James Mitchell (Democratic Party) (also known as Smuggie) is an at-large member of the Charlotte City Council in North Carolina. He assumed office on September 6, 2022. His current term ends on December 1, 2025.

Mitchell (Democratic Party) is running for re-election for an at-large seat of the Charlotte City Council in North Carolina. He is on the ballot in the Democratic primary on September 9, 2025.^[source]

Biography

James Mitchell attended West Charlotte High School. He earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from North Carolina Central University. Mitchell has served as president of the National League of Cities. He was elected to the Charlotte City Council as an at-large representative in 2015. Mitchell previously served on the Charlotte City Council representing District 2 from 1999 to 2013.^[1]

Elections

2025

General election

The candidate list in this election may not be complete.

The primary will occur on September 9, 2025. The general election will occur on November 4, 2025. Additional general election candidates will be added here following the primary.

General election for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

Misun Kim and Edwin Peacock are running in the general election for Charlotte City Council At-large on November 4, 2025.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Misun Kim (R)
		Edwin Peacock (R)

	There are no incumbents in this race.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

The following candidates are running in the Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large on September 9, 2025.

		Candidate
		Dimple Ajmera
		James Mitchell
	Submit photo	LaWana Slack-Mayfield
		Victoria Watlington
	Submit photo	Matt Britt
		Roderick Davis
	Submit photo	Will Holley
	Submit photo	J.G. Lockhart
	Submit photo	Emerson Stoldt
	Submit photo	Namrata Yadav

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Misun Kim and Edwin Peacock advanced from the Republican primary for Charlotte City Council At-large.

Endorsements

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2023

General election

General election for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

Incumbent Victoria Watlington, incumbent Dimple Ajmera, incumbent James Mitchell, and incumbent LaWana Slack-Mayfield defeated Steven DiFiore II in the general election for Charlotte City Council At-large on November 7, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Victoria Watlington (D)	23.2	65,869
✔		Dimple Ajmera (D)	23.1	65,625
✔		James Mitchell (D)	22.2	63,053
✔	Submit photo	LaWana Slack-Mayfield (D)	21.6	61,270
		Steven DiFiore II (L)	8.2	23,312
		Other/Write-in votes	1.6	4,489

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 283,618
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large on September 12, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dimple Ajmera	21.7	19,164
✔	Submit photo	LaWana Slack-Mayfield	19.9	17,579
✔		James Mitchell	18.8	16,669
✔		Victoria Watlington	17.9	15,818
		Charlene Henderson El	12.9	11,447
		Ben Copeland	8.8	7,820

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 88,497
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Libertarian primary election

The Libertarian primary election was canceled. Steven DiFiore II advanced from the Libertarian primary for Charlotte City Council At-large.

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Mitchell in this election.

2022

General election

General election for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

The following candidates ran in the general election for Charlotte City Council At-large on July 26, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dimple Ajmera (D)	16.6	46,751
✔		Braxton Winston II (D)	16.3	46,045
✔	Submit photo	LaWana Slack-Mayfield (D)	15.1	42,582
✔		James Mitchell (D)	15.1	42,509
		Kyle Luebke (R)	10.1	28,600
		David Merrill (R)	9.0	25,385
		Carrie Olinski (R)	8.9	25,000
		Charlie Mulligan (R)	8.8	24,698
		Other/Write-in votes	0.2	555

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 282,125
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large on May 17, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Braxton Winston II	21.1	44,761
✔		Dimple Ajmera	18.9	40,073
✔	Submit photo	LaWana Slack-Mayfield	17.7	37,461
✔		James Mitchell	16.2	34,331
		Larken Egleston	14.0	29,637
	Submit photo	Patrick Cannon	12.2	25,789

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 212,052
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

David Merrill, Charlie Mulligan, Carrie Olinski, and Kyle Luebke defeated David Michael Rice in the Republican primary for Charlotte City Council At-large on May 17, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		David Merrill	24.0	19,541
✔		Charlie Mulligan	22.7	18,461
✔		Carrie Olinski	20.8	16,885
✔		Kyle Luebke	19.9	16,150
	Submit photo	David Michael Rice	12.6	10,281

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 81,318
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2019

General election

General election for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

Incumbent Julie Eiselt, incumbent Braxton Winston II, incumbent James Mitchell, and incumbent Dimple Ajmera defeated Joshua Richardson in the general election for Charlotte City Council At-large on November 5, 2019.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Julie Eiselt (D)	23.9	67,713
✔	Braxton Winston II (D)	22.1	62,607
✔	James Mitchell (D)	22.0	62,508
✔	Dimple Ajmera (D)	20.0	56,759
	Joshua Richardson (R)	11.3	32,167
	Other/Write-in votes	0.6	1,784

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 283,538
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large on September 10, 2019.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Braxton Winston II	19.4	45,018
✔	James Mitchell	17.0	39,482
✔	Dimple Ajmera	15.9	36,936
✔	Julie Eiselt	15.9	36,868
	LaWana Mayfield	14.8	34,409
	Jorge Millares	11.8	27,514
	Chad Stachowicz	5.3	12,208

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 232,435
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Joshua Richardson advanced from the Republican primary for Charlotte City Council At-large.

2017

See also: Mayoral election in Charlotte, North Carolina (2017) and Municipal elections in Charlotte, North Carolina (2017)

The city of Charlotte, North Carolina, held elections for mayor and city council on November 7, 2017. A primary was held on September 12, 2017. A primary runoff was held on October 10, 2017, for the district 5 race. A candidate needed to receive over 40% of the vote in order to avoid a runoff election. All 11 seats on the city council were up for election. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was July 21, 2017.

The following candidates ran in the Charlotte City Council at-large general election.^[2]

Charlotte City Council, At-large General Election, 2017
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Julie Eiselt Incumbent	17.29%	73,348
	Democratic	Braxton Winston II	16.51%	70,030
	Democratic	James "Smuggie" Mitchell Incumbent	16.45%	69,777
	Democratic	Dimple Ajmera	14.59%	61,882
	Republican	John K. Powell Jr.	11.38%	48,277
	Republican	Parker Cains	10.39%	44,068
	Republican	David Michael Rice	8.19%	34,733
	Libertarian	Steven DiFiore II	5.07%	21,514
		Write-in votes	0.15%	645
Total Votes				424,274
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Official General Election Results," November 16, 2017

The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary election for four at-large seats on the Charlotte City Council.^[3]

Charlotte City Council, At-large Democratic Primary Election, 2017
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
James "Smuggie" Mitchell Incumbent	19.38%	22,063
Braxton Winston II	17.03%	19,385
Julie Eiselt Incumbent	16.85%	19,181
Dimple Ajmera	13.30%	15,140
Ryan McGill	12.08%	13,752
Claire Green Fallon Incumbent	11.22%	12,772
Roderick Davis	5.70%	6,486
Jesse Boyd	4.44%	5,052
Total Votes		113,831
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Official Primary Election Results," accessed September 18, 2017

2015

See also: Charlotte, North Carolina municipal elections, 2015

The city of Charlotte, North Carolina, held elections for mayor and city council on November 3, 2015. A primary took place on September 15, 2015. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was July 17, 2015.^[4] At-large city council candidates in the Democratic primary were Laurence E. Bibbs, Darrell Bonapart, Bruce Clark, Julie Eiselt, Claire Green Fallon, Sean Gautam, Shawn Greeson, Mo Idlibby, Vi Lyles, Billy D. Maddalon, James "Smuggie" Mitchell and Aaron Sanders. Pablo Carvajal, John K. Powell, Jr. and David Michael Rice were unopposed in the Republican primary. In the general election, Democratic candidates Lyles, Mitchell, Eiselt and Fallon won election over Republican candidates Carvajal, Powell and Rice.^[5]^[6]^[7]

Charlotte City Council At-large, General election, 2015
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Julie Eiselt	17.0%	44,419
	Democratic	Vi Lyles Incumbent	16.4%	42,807
	Democratic	Claire Green Fallon Incumbent	15.8%	41,352
	Democratic	James "Smuggie" Mitchell	14.3%	37,406
	Republican	John K. Powell, Jr.	14.2%	37,158
	Republican	Pablo Carvajal	11.7%	30,517
	Republican	David Michael Rice	10.4%	27,246
		Write-in votes	0.29%	764
Total Votes				261,669
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Official General Election Results - Mecklenburg County," November 16, 2015

Charlotte City Council, At-large Democratic Primary, 2015
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Vi Lyles Incumbent	18.8%	19,194
James "Smuggie" Mitchell	17.3%	17,689
Julie Eiselt	12.7%	13,011
Claire Green Fallon Incumbent	11.8%	12,029
Billy D. Maddalon	9.3%	9,525
Darrell Bonapart	9%	9,179
Mo Idlibby	6.6%	6,759
Bruce Clark	3.8%	3,872
Aaron Sanders	3.4%	3,434
Shawn Greeson	3.1%	3,198
Sean Gautam	2.3%	2,369
Laurence E. Bibbs	2.1%	2,106
Total Votes		102,365
Source: Mecklenburg County Board of Elections, "Official primary election results," accessed September 24, 2015

2014

See also: North Carolina's 12th Congressional District elections, 2014

Mitchell ran in the 2014 election for the U.S. House to represent North Carolina's 12th District. Mitchell was defeated by Alma Adams in the Democratic primary on May 6, 2014.^[8]

**U.S. House, North Carolina District 12 Democratic Primary, 2014**
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Alma Adams	44%	15,235
Malcolm Graham	23.6%	8,180
George Battle	12.5%	4,342
Marcus Brandon	8.2%	2,856
James "Smuggie" Mitchell	5.1%	1,775
Curtis Osborne	5%	1,733
Rajive Patel	1.4%	502
Total Votes		34,623
Source: Results via the North Carolina State Board of Elections

Campaign themes

2025

Ballotpedia survey responses

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2023

James Mitchell did not complete Ballotpedia's 2023 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

James Mitchell did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2019

James Mitchell did not complete Ballotpedia's 2019 Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign website

Mitchell's campaign website stated the following:

“

JOB CREATION

Addressing upward mobility challenges
Developing workforce development
Training those with multiple employment barriers

PUBLIC SAFETY

Implementing crime watch programs in neighborhoods
Educating citizens when to call 911
Advocating for Implicit Bias & Diversity Training for police officers

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

Voting in favor of 50 million bond for Affordable Housing - increase from 15 mil
Enlisting assistance of several church communities to aid

CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT

Hosting town hall meetings
Founding president of NextLevel Leadership
Providing a forum for community suggestions^[9]

”

—James Mitchell’s campaign website (2019)^[10]

2017

Mitchell's website highlighted the following campaign themes:^[11]

Jobs

Excerpt: "Councilman Mitchell believes that putting people back to work begins with breaking down the barriers to employment many in our city face. This includes creating workforce development programs to ensure that everyone who wants to work is able to work."

Small business

Excerpt: "Councilman Mitchell is a strong supporter of Charlotte’s ever growing small business community. He led the charge on the the [sic] Charlotte Inclusion program, which increased competition in city contracting and procurement opportunities for Minority, Women, and Small Business Enterprises. He will always be an advocate for local companies as they continue to make their mark in the community and beyond."

Public private partnership

Excerpt: "Councilman Mitchell is a champion of economic development. He leads the city’s economic development committee and believes that a partnership between the public and private sector is instrumental for a robust economy. Councilman Mitchell has been instrumental in securing funding for renovations to Bank of America Stadium and the Charlotte Knights Uptown ball park."

External links

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Candidate

Charlotte City Council At-large

Website

Facebook

Officeholder

Charlotte City Council At-large

Website

Personal

Facebook

Footnotes

[meet-1] James Mitchell campaign website, "Meet Smuggie," accessed August 28, 2019

[2] Mecklenburg County Board of Elections, "Candidate List," accessed July 23, 2017

[3] Mecklenburg County Board of Elections, "Candidate List," accessed July 23, 2017

[4] Mecklenburg County Board of Elections, "Multi Year Election Schedule," accessed September 19, 2014

[5] Mecklenburg County Board of Elections, "Official primary election results," accessed September 24, 2015

[6] Mecklenburg County Board of Elections, "Official candidate list," accessed July 28, 2015

[7] North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Unofficial General Election Results - Mecklenburg County," November 3, 2015

[8] Associated Press, "2014 primary results," accessed May 6, 2014

[quotedisclaimer-9] Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.

[10] James Mitchell’s campaign website, “Issues,” accessed August 28, 2019

[11] James "Smuggie Mitchell campaign website, "Homepage," accessed September 7, 2017

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James "Smuggie" Mitchell

Biography

Elections

2025

General election

General election for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

Republican primary election

Endorsements

2023

General election

General election for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

Libertarian primary election

Endorsements

2022

General election

General election for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

2019

General election

General election for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Charlotte City Council At-large (4 seats)

Republican primary election

2017

2015

2014

Campaign themes

2025

Ballotpedia survey responses

2023

2022

2019

Campaign website

2017

See also

External links

Footnotes

Information about voting

2025 Elections

2026 Elections

2024 Election analysis

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