Ken Thomas (North Carolina)

Ken Thomas

Nonpartisan

Education

Associate

Southeastern Community College

Military

Service / branch

U.S. Army

Personal

Profession

Master mechanic

Contact

Campaign website

Ken Thomas ran for election for Mayor of Oak Island in North Carolina. Thomas won in the general election on November 5, 2019.

Thomas completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2019. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Ken Thomas served in the U.S. Army. He earned a degree from Southeastern Community College. His career experience includes working as a master mechanic, as a business owner in the heavy equipment industry, and as a maintenance supervisor for Georgia Pacific.

Elections

2019

See also: Mayoral election in Oak Island, North Carolina (2019)

General election

General election for Mayor of Oak Island

Ken Thomas defeated incumbent Cin Brochure in the general election for Mayor of Oak Island on November 5, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Ken Thomas (Nonpartisan)	50.7	1,357
		Cin Brochure (Nonpartisan)	48.2	1,289
		Other/Write-in votes	1.1	29

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,675 (100.00% precincts reporting)
= 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.

Campaign themes

2019

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Ken Thomas completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2019. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Thomas' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am business owner, of over 35 years, in the heavy machinery industry. I built my business from the ground up. I know how to run a profitable business and believe that the Town of Oak Island should be run like a business. This is the only way to cover the outstanding debts. We need to balance the budget while keeping our town an affordable place to live. With over 35 years experience in business and thorough knowledge of budgets and North Carolina laws, my tenure as Mayor will contribute to the betterment of life for all citizens of Oak Island.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• I want to ensure the town is fiscally responsible.
• I want to address the stormwater issues before another storm.
• I want the town governemnt to be transparent in its actions. As Mayor, I pledge to be available for any discussion regarding any facet in our town that needs attention, and assist each and every citizen find the information they need to make informed decisions.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I am passionate about making the town a safe, affordable place to live while also ensuring the health and safety of our citizens. I want to improve our financial bottom line without adding unnecessary expenses, like the three businesses the town now owns. I want to make sure that we are prepared for storms that come our way and that all of our residents have access to their properties as soon as possible. I want to come up with a solution for our parking problem without creating paid parking. And finally, I want to find other options for our sewer assessments and sewer tax.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Integrity and transparency

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

Succesful business owner Financial management Love of the Town

What legacy would you like to leave?

A fiscally responsible town that works with the citizens to keep Oak Island an afforable place to live with the natural beauty it affords.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

Tammy Wynette, 'Till I Get It Right'

A mayor is a leader in his or her city. What does that mean to you?

The mayor is responsible for education and explanation of each step the town government makes and serves as the chief representative of the people.

Mayors have many responsibilities, which vary from city to city. Which of those do you personally consider the most important in your city?

Ensuring the health and safety of its citizens. Eliminating debt. Increasing income.

If the mayor in your city is a member of the city council and there's a city manager appointed to handle the day-to-day administration of the city government, what do you believe should be the mayor's top priority in office?

The mayor, and town council, are responsible for establishing laws that are meant to benefit the people of the community. Working with the town manager to ensure a balanced budget for benefit of the Town, working to ensure that Town is running efficiently while also serving as the city's liaison with the public.

What do you love most about your city?

The natural beauty and small town feel.

What do you perceive to be your city's greatest challenges over the next decade?

Fiscal responsibilty, managing growth while looking toward economic development, and lastly our storm response.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between your city and the state government?

We should leveratge the state in our journey toward a balanced budget. This includes working with the State to find finacial solutions, such as grants, to work toward a fiscally responsible Town. In addition, we can work with the state to ensure we keep the natural beauty of our town while ensuring the health and safety of its citizens. This includes working with state to create laws around duumping contanimates, determing the use of wind turbines off the coast, and keeping wind and hail premiums low.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between your city and the federal government?

As with the State the Federal government can be leveraged for financial support. There is money available at every level of the governement that samll towns should take advangtage of.

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.

Ballotpedia biographical submission form

The candidate completed Ballotpedia's biographical information submission form:

“	What is your political philosophy? What do you hope to achieve while in office? Why did you choose to run for office? I love Oak Island and I care about my neighbors. Our town will grow because of our location and beautiful beaches, but the Town must be maintained as an affordable place to live. We can accomplish that with a transparent accounting of our debts and income. I also had some issues with how the town was run and helped during Hurricane Florence. There were many things that could be handled differently. I will work diligently to get Oak Island on track fiscally and work for the health and safety of our residents. Is there anything you would like to add? You will often read or hear me talk about transparency and integrity. I think without both of these traits our town government is not meeting the needs of its citizens. Every citizen should be able to find out how things are handled and as your Mayor, I pledge to be available for any discussion regarding any facet in our town that needs attention, and assist each and every citizen.	”
—Ken Thomas

See also

2019 Elections

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External links

• Search Google News for this topic
• Town of Oak Island website
• Oak Island Town Council webpage