Mitchell Silver
Mitchell Silver is a member of the Raleigh City Council in North Carolina, representing District A. He assumed office on December 2, 2024. His current term ends in 2026.
Silver is running for re-election to the Raleigh City Council to represent District A in North Carolina. He is on the ballot in the general election on November 3, 2026. The primary for this office on March 3, 2026, was canceled.
Biography
Mitchell Silver earned a bachelor's degree from the Pratt Institute and a graduate degree from Hunter College.[1]
Elections
2026
See also: City elections in Raleigh, North Carolina (2026)
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
General election for Raleigh City Council District A
Incumbent Mitchell Silver (Nonpartisan) and Whitney Hill (Nonpartisan) are running in the general election for Raleigh City Council District A on November 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Mitchell Silver (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Whitney Hill (Nonpartisan) | |
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 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Nonpartisan primary
The primary scheduled for March 3, 2026, was canceled. Incumbent Mitchell Silver (Nonpartisan) and Whitney Hill (Nonpartisan) advanced from the primary for Raleigh City Council District A without appearing on the ballot.
Endorsements
Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements. To send us an endorsement, click here.
2024
See also: City elections in Raleigh, North Carolina (2024)
General election
General election for Raleigh City Council District A
Mitchell Silver defeated Whitney Hill and incumbent Mary Black in the general election for Raleigh City Council District A on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Mitchell Silver (Nonpartisan) | 40.0 | 17,900 |
| Whitney Hill (Nonpartisan) | 33.0 | 14,746 | |
 | Mary Black (Nonpartisan) | 26.5 | 11,860 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.4 | 199 | ||
| Total votes: 44,705 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Endorsements
Silver received the following endorsements.
Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
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Campaign website
Silver's campaign website stated the following:
MITCHELL'S PRIORITIES FOR RALEIGH
As Raleigh’s Planning Director from 2005 to 2014, Mitchell worked to craft a blueprint to guide Raleigh’s growth and development — the 2030 Comprehensive Plan and Unified Development Ordinance. It was a forward-thinking effort that brought residents, neighborhood groups, developers, small business owners, and community leaders together. The vision of that plan centered on equity and prosperity, sustainability, expanding housing choices, and managing our growth in a smart way.
Mitchell believes Raleigh needs to get back to the basics of planning — focusing on people first, and being purpose-driven in how our city grows and builds. Mitchell will bring the same approach he brought as Planning Director to the City Council — bringing our community together to create great places and spaces for every resident and every neighborhood.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING
Housing is a human right and Raleigh needs to be bold and innovative to provide more housing and make housing more affordable for everyone. Mitchell's plan for affordable housing is focused on:
- Directly investing in creating new affordable housing units, and strengthening partnerships with Wake County and non-profits for affordable and supportive housing projects.
- Expanding housing choice, allowing additional density — such as townhomes and duplexes — in the right places, alleviating demand pushing up prices in neighborhoods.
- Protecting existing affordable communities and providing property tax relief to ensure longtime residents can remain comfortably in their homes. Creating community land trusts and land banking for future affordable housing developments.
- Streamlining the approval and permitting process to keep costs practical.
SMART GROWTH
As a professional planner, Mitchell knows Raleigh’s growth should benefit all residents, accommodating needed growth while keeping our neighborhoods affordable and maintaining the soul of our communities.
- Keeping development consistent with our Comprehensive Plan, so that growth is predictable and new development happens in areas that make sense.
- Creating an anti-displacement plan to protect existing residents, property, and spaces -- particularly in historically marginalized communities.
- Ensuring public input and community engagement on new development projects, so residents are informed and have a say in potential changes in their neighborhood.
PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY
Mitchell is proud to be endorsed by firefighters and law enforcement officers. Healthy and safe communities are key to creating a Raleigh where everyone can live, grow, and thrive. On the City Council, Mitchell will support efforts to make Raleigh a leader in community safety, including:
- Increasing pay and benefits for law enforcement and first responders, ensuring those who protect our community can afford to live and raise a family here in Raleigh.
- Establishing the highest standards for ethics and conduct and providing law enforcement with the best training on equitable enforcement and community
- Investing in sufficient infrastructure and personnel across the city to lower response times and maintain the safety of all neighborhoods.
- Being proactive in community outreach and engagement and addressing underlying problems to prevent crime before it occurs.
- Building partnerships with civilian counselors to ensure we respond to substance use, mental health, and family crises appropriately. As a planner and former Parks Commissioner, Mitchell knows that public safety includes creating public spaces where everyone feels safe and welcome. He’ll support investing in parks and community centers equitably throughout Raleigh and protect our green and natural spaces — supporting our environment, natural resources and the physical health and mental well-being health of all residents.
SUSTAINABILITY AND PRESERVING THE ENVIRONMENT
Throughout his career, Mitchell has been an advocate for sustainability, climate resiliency, and environmental justice. As a Parks Commissioner, he prioritized parks as a line of defense against climate change. He oversaw the protection of over 30,000 acres of parks and natural areas, and the planting of over a million trees. Neighborhood parks were built to capture stormwater and reduce impervious surfaces, and renewable energy was used to power buildings.
Raleigh should remain the City of Oaks, and Mitchell will prioritize environmental concerns in city decision making, ensuring new development is sustainable in the long-term. His approach to sustainability includes:
- Focusing on creating walkable, mixed-use communities along transit corridors so basic errands can be accomplished without a car.
- Preserving and expanding Raleigh's tree canopy.
- Increasing city use of renewable energy and reducing emissions.
TRANSPARENCY AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Everyone in Raleigh deserves a voice in our future, and residents should be able to openly engage with their city council members and have an opportunity to provide input on proposals.
As Planning Director, Mitchell held regular listening and visioning sessions with community leaders, Citizen Advisory Councils, and residents across the city as Raleigh crafted the 2030 Comprehensive Plan, Unified Development Ordinance, and policies around growth and development. Mitchell will continue his commitment to community engagement and outreach on the Raleigh City Council, especially as the city looks to create a new comprehensive plan.
— Mitchell Silver's campaign website (March 10, 2026)
2024
Mitchell Silver completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Silver's responses.
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- Mitchell Silver knows housing is a human right, and that making housing more affordable for everyone will require bold and innovative thinking at all levels of government. He is proud to support Kamala Harris and her plan to build millions of new housing units for working families across the country and to make purchasing a home easier. As a City Council member, Mitchell will advocate for direct investment in affordable housing through housing bonds, community land trusts, and preservation of existing affordable neighborhoods. He’ll support expanding and diversifying our housing supply by allowing additional density in the right places to reduce the property tax burden and alleviate demand pushing up prices in existing neighborhoods.
- Raleigh’s growth presents significant opportunities and challenges. As a professional planner, Mitchell knows Raleigh’s growth should benefit all residents, including both it’s longtime residents and newcomers. That means creating spaces for necessary growth while maintaining the soul of our communities. He’ll advocate for a deliberate, transparent, and community-centered planning process that ensures every resident has a voice in our city’s future. As Raleigh moves to create a new long-range comprehensive plan, Mitchell will use his experience to advocate for growth in the right places, preserving existing neighborhoods, as well as the expansion of public transportation along key transit corridors.
- Mitchell believes healthy and safe communities are key to creating a Raleigh where everyone can live, grow, and thrive. He’ll invest in our law enforcement officers and first responders — raising pay and benefits, providing the highest standard of training, and ensuring we have sufficient infrastructure across the city to respond to emergencies. As a planner and former Parks Commissioner, Mitchell knows that public safety includes creating public spaces where everyone feels safe and welcome. He’ll support investing in parks and community centers equitably throughout Raleigh and protect our green and natural spaces — supporting our environment, natural resources, and the physical health and mental well-being of all residents.
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
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Candidate Raleigh City Council District A |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on October 11, 2024
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Mary Black |
Raleigh City Council District A 2024-Present |
Succeeded by - |
