Jess Young McLean (Asheville City Council, North Carolina, candidate 2026)
 |
U.S. Senate • U.S. House • State Senate • State House • Supreme court • Appellate courts • State ballot measures • School boards • Municipal • All local elections by county • How to run for office |
 |
Jess Young McLean ran for election to the Asheville City Council in North Carolina. McLean was on the ballot in the primary on March 3, 2026.[source]
McLean completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. Click here to read the survey answers.
[1]Biography
Jess Young McLean provided the following biographical information via Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey on January 26, 2026:
- High school: TC Roberson High School
- Bachelor's: Boston College, 2008
- Profession: Nonprofit Executive Director
- Incumbent officeholder: No
- Campaign website
- Campaign Facebook
Elections
Nonpartisan primary
Nonpartisan primary election for Asheville City Council (3 seats)
The following candidates ran in the primary for Asheville City Council on March 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
Drew Ball (Nonpartisan)  | ||
| Maggie Ullman Berthiaume (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Jeffrey Burroughs (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Scott Burroughs (Nonpartisan) | |
| R. Blake Butler (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Tiffany DeBellott (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Dan Ferrell (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Angel Gonzales (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Nina Ireland (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Shaunda Jackson (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Tyler Ladd (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Jess Young McLean (Nonpartisan) | ||
| David Moritz (Nonpartisan) | ||
| S. Antanette Mosley (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Bobby Smith (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Sheneika E. Smith (Nonpartisan) | ||
| CJ Snyder (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Kyle Turner (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Jared Wheatley (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Keith Young (Nonpartisan) | ||
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Election results
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for McLean in this election.
Campaign themes
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Jess Young McLean completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by McLean's responses.
| Collapse all
My work has brought me into close relationship with families navigating housing instability, underfunded schools, low wages, and rising costs of living. Those experiences have shaped how I understand public policy: inequity is not inevitable; it is the result of decisions about budgets, priorities, and power. I believe local government has both the responsibility and the opportunity to make different choices.
I approach leadership with curiosity, discipline, and care. I am a fast reader, a deep learner, and someone who believes good governance requires understanding the data, listening closely to community members, asking thoughtful questions, and taking seriously the real impacts of policy decisions. I believe housing, healthcare, education, and access are human rights, and that our city must actively work to reduce displacement, support working people, and invest in children and community well-being.
I am running for City Council to bring values-driven, accountable leadership to Asheville and to help build a city where people can not only survive, but truly thrive.- CARE. Care isn’t a slogan, it’s a daily practice. When we care for one another and we have love in our hearts, there is nothing we cannot accomplish together!
Caring for others drives a deep-rooted commitment to act on my values. When we truly value housing, education, safe communities, and dignity, we don’t just talk about them. We show up, we listen, and we do the work. That’s how I’ve served for years, from leading nonprofits that support thousands of families across Western North Carolina to serving on Helene recovery efforts like the Buncombe County Long Term Recovery Group and the Just Recovery Collaborative.
Care means choosing our shared humanity over politics and making decisions based on impact and lived experience. - COMMUNITY. Community is living, breathing, and constantly evolving, and we must strengthen it together. I believe deeply in the power of our neighbors, institutions, nonprofits, families, schools, and small businesses coming together to build a city that works for everyone. I grew up in Asheville and have witnessed close to 40 years of change, growth, and possibility in our small mountain valley. Through my work leading nonprofit organizations and boards along with disaster recovery service following Helene, I’ve seen how fragile community can be when systems are strained and how resilient it becomes when collaboration replaces silos. Strong community is the foundation for a city where everyone has opportunity, support, and belonging.
- COURAGE. I am running to bring bold, principled leadership to City Council. Asheville is at a cross-roads, and this moment demands courage from local leaders. We must be willing to say what we mean and do what we say, especially when it comes to protecting vulnerable communities, investing in children and families, and standing up for human dignity. Preemptive compliance and political caution have real consequences, including displacement, deepening poverty, and eroding trust. Through recovery work and community leadership, I’ve learned that courage looks like disrupting inequitable systems designed to perpetuate oppression. It looks like accountability, transparency, and standing up against those who most benefit from our silence.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
Footnotes
