Tammi Thurm

Tammi Thurm

Candidate, Greensboro City Council District 5

Greensboro City Council District 5

Tenure

2017 - Present

Term ends

2025

Years in position

7

Report an officeholder change

Elections and appointments

Last elected

July 26, 2022

Next election

November 4, 2025

Education

High school

Springbrook High School

Bachelor's

University of North Carolina, Greensboro, 1981

Graduate

University of North Carolina, Greensboro, 1985

Personal

Birthplace

District of Columbia

Religion

Jewish

Profession

Retired

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign Instagram

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Tammi Thurm is a member of the Greensboro City Council in North Carolina, representing District 5. She assumed office on December 5, 2017. Her current term ends in 2025.

Thurm is running for re-election to the Greensboro City Council to represent District 5 in North Carolina. The primary for this office on October 7, 2025, was canceled.

Thurm completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. Click here to read the survey answers.

Although city council elections in Greensboro are officially nonpartisan, Thurm identifies as a member of the Democratic Party.

Biography

Tammi Thurm was born in Washington, D.C. Thurm earned a B.S. in business administration and management and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 1981 and 1985, respectively. She was the firm administrator for Hagan Barrett & Langley PLLC. Her professional experience includes work as the CFO and human resources manager for Listingbook, the CFO and vice president of operations for Capsule Group, and the vice president of finance and administration for Ornamental Products, Inc.

As of 2025, Thurm was affiliated with the following organizations:

• Jordan Lake One Water Alliance, Vice Chair
• North Carolina League of Municipalities, Board of Directors
• Greensboro Downtown Parks, Inc.
• Transportation Advisory Council
• Convention and Visitors Bureau, alternate
• Greensboro Jewish Federation, Vice President of Education

Elections

2025

See also: City elections in Greensboro, North Carolina (2025)

General election

General election for Greensboro City Council District 5

Incumbent Tammi Thurm and Jeannette Davidson-Mayer are running in the general election for Greensboro City Council District 5 on November 4, 2025.

		Candidate
		Tammi Thurm (Nonpartisan)
		Jeannette Davidson-Mayer (Nonpartisan)

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
= 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.
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Nonpartisan primary election

The primary election was canceled. Incumbent Tammi Thurm and Jeannette Davidson-Mayer advanced from the primary for Greensboro City Council District 5.

Endorsements

To view Thurm's endorsements as published by their campaign, click here. To send us an endorsement, click here.

2022

See also: City elections in Greensboro, North Carolina (2022)

General election

General election for Greensboro City Council District 5

Incumbent Tammi Thurm defeated Tony Wilkins in the general election for Greensboro City Council District 5 on July 26, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Tammi Thurm (Nonpartisan)	55.8	2,896
		Tony Wilkins (Nonpartisan)	44.0	2,282
		Other/Write-in votes	0.2	9

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 5,187
= 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.

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Greensboro City Council District 5

Incumbent Tammi Thurm and Tony Wilkins defeated Robert Bodenhamer in the primary for Greensboro City Council District 5 on May 17, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Tammi Thurm (Nonpartisan)	45.5	2,808
✔		Tony Wilkins (Nonpartisan)	42.2	2,607
	Submit photo	Robert Bodenhamer (Nonpartisan)	12.3	761

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 6,176
= 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.

2017

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

Greensboro, North Carolina, held a general election for mayor and all eight seats on the city council on November 7, 2017. A primary election was held on October 10, 2017. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was July 21, 2017. Tammi Thurm defeated incumbent Tony Wilkins in the general election for the District 5 seat on the Greensboro City Council.

Greensboro City Council, District 5 General Election, 2017
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Tammi Thurm	54.93%	2,513
Tony Wilkins Incumbent	44.90%	2,054
Write-in votes	0.17%	8
Total Votes		4,575
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections, "11/07/2017 Official Municipal Election Results - Guilford," accessed November 22, 2017

Tammi Thurm and incumbent Tony Wilkins defeated Sal Leone and Tanner Lucas in the primary election for the District 5 seat on the Greensboro City Council.

Greensboro City Council, District 5 Primary Election, 2017
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Tammi Thurm	45.83%	1,066
Tony Wilkins Incumbent	42.61%	991
Sal Leone	7.27%	169
Tanner Lucas	4.30%	100
Total Votes		2,326
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections, "10/10/2017 Official Primary Election Results - Guilford," accessed October 27, 2017

Endorsements

Thurm received endorsements from the following in 2017:

• Equality NC
• Replacements Ltd PAC
• Triad Labor Council

Campaign themes

2025

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Tammi Thurm completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Thurm's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Thurm earned a B.S. in business administration and management and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Recently retired, Thurm spent her career as CFO/VP of Finance of large family owned businesses. Thurm currently serves as the Vice Chair of Jordon Lake One Water, as a board member of the North Carolina League of Municipalities and on the board of the Transportation Advisory Council, the Greensboro Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Greensboro Downtown Parks, Inc, and Council Liaison to the Transgender Task Force.

In addition to her City Council appointments, Thurm has served as the president of the Greensboro Jewish Federation's Women's Executive Cabinet, the vice president and women's campaign chair of the Greensboro Jewish Federation, the treasurer of the Triad Association of Legal Administrators, a fellow at the North Carolina Institute of Political Leadership, and a member of the Greensboro Minimum Housing Commission and the board of B'nai Shalom Day School.

Since being elected in 2017, Thurm has focused on public safety, Permanent Supportive Housing, and economic development in addition to addressing the needs of District 5 Residents and Businesses.

Thurm is married and is the grandmother to 5.

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?

• Public Safety: Working to make our neighborhoods safer by expanding resources and programs that directly help all of Greensboro thrive safely and respectfully. Since taking office, Thurm has worked alongside leadership for Greensboro's public safety departments to ensure that they have the resources they need to keep our community safe. Thurm is proudly endorsed by the Professional Fire Fighters of Greensboro and The Greensboro Police Officers Association.
• Affordable and Attainable Housing: Continuing to work towards creating more attainable housing. By repurposing land within our city, we can cut down on costs to develop, leading to more affordable and attainable housing options. Expanding affordable attainable housing is critical to keeping our community members here in Greensboro.
• Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH): PSH is a critical component in the path toward addressing the growing unsheltered population in Greensboro. While we’ve made great strides in increasing the availability of emergency services, we still need to continue the work to address the problem at the root. I’m a proud supporter and advocate for more Permanent Supportive Housing initiatives in Greensboro.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH): I’m a proud supporter and advocate for more Permanent Supportive Housing initiatives in Greensboro. After working with local and county officials, I’m excited to say that Greensboro will announce plans this fall for its first permanent supporting housing project.

Economic Development: I’m proud of the work we’ve done to drive new economic developments to Greensboro, including big projects in District 5. Since taking office, we’ve seen Toyota build a new battery plant, Boom Supersonic, Marshall Aeronautics, and JetZero invest in the future of aerospace right in our backyard. We need to continue investing in our city and improving our systems to make Greensboro an easy place to do business.

What legacy would you like to leave?

Opening of Greensboro's first Permanent Supportive Housing initiative for the unsheltered population in our city.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

Bookkeeper at a local law firm where I worked for 4 years.

What kind of skills or expertise do you believe would be the most helpful for the holders of this office to possess?

- Community based leadership and a strong understanding of the diverse needs of your fellow residents.

- The ability to understand both intended and unintended consequences of actions taken.
- The commitment to put your personal desires and needs behind those of the greater community.

- Foster a sense of connection with your constituents regardless of personal and political beliefs.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

Professional Fire Fighters of Greensboro

The Greensboro Police Officers Association
Representative Kathy Manning
State Senator Michael Garrett

Chip Hagan

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.

2022

Tammi Thurm completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Thurm's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I moved to Greensboro to attend UNCG and have stayed in the area ever since. I work here, and my kids and grandkids live here. After being elected to serve the people of District 5 in 2017, I have focused on supporting safe and affordable housing, working with neighbors, local businesses, and developers to promote smart growth in Greensboro, and working with residents through prompt constituent services. In addition to City Council, I currently serve as the elected official to the Jordan Lake One Water Alliance, on the board of Greensboro Downtown Parks, Inc., on the Transportations Advisory Council, as an alternate on the Convention and Visitors Bureau, and have worked for the community as a member of the Greensboro Minimum Housing Standards Committee and the Vice President of the Greensboro Jewish Federation, among other work in community organizations and causes. I understand the balance of investing for the future and ensuring that we make fiscally sound decisions. We must keep the momentum going with smart investments into our community to ensure that the recent ‘wins’ are wins for all residents of Greensboro, not just some.

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?

• Affordable housing: Affordable housing is my top priority. I am very proud of my work on Greensboro’s first permanent supportive housing project that will include wrap-around services. After extensive work, we just passed the 10-year housing plan focusing on affordable rental homes, neighborhood reinvestment, access to homeownership, and permanent supportive housing. We can only continue to grow our city and our economic base if we have an employee base for that future growth. We need an affordable place for those employees to live. The lack of decent affordable housing impacts the quality of life for all of us. It also impacts how our youth view their future and influences the options they see for a viable future in Greensboro.
• Economic developments to Greensboro to help our economy boom. In recent months, we have brought thousands of jobs and billions in investment. From the Publix Distribution Center, Toyota battery plant, to Boom Supersonic, and thousands of additional jobs throughout the city, it is clear, we have a strong momentum. This is a core foundation to helping Greensboro grow as a community for all of us.
• Making Greensboro home for everyone- I was a champion of helping the Non-Discrimination Ordinance in Greensboro and successfully motioned to have the NDO expanded to smaller businesses. I have also worked to ensure that police can communicate with members of our community who speak different languages. I also serve as the City Council liaison to the transgender task force

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I am passionate about affordable housing, LGBTQ+ rights and protections, and transportation.

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.

2017

Candidate survey

See also: Ballotpedia's municipal government candidate survey

Thurm participated in Ballotpedia's 2017 survey of municipal government candidates. The following sections display her responses to the survey questions. When asked what her top priority would be if elected, the candidate made the following statement:

“	Expanding economic opportunities for all residents	”
—Tammi Thurm (October 8, 2017)

Ranking the issues

The candidate was asked to rank the following issues by importance in the city, with 1 being the most important and 12 being the least important: city services (trash, utilities, etc.), civil rights, crime reduction/prevention, environment, government transparency, homelessness, housing, K-12 education, public pensions/retirement funds, recreational opportunities, transportation, and unemployment. This table displays this candidate's rankings from most to least important.

Issue importance ranking
Candidate's ranking	Issue	Candidate's ranking	Issue
1	Unemployment	7	City services (trash, utilities, etc.)
2	Homelessness	8	K-12 education
3	Housing	9	Crime reduction/prevention
4	Civil rights	10	Environment
5	Government transparency	11	Recreational opportunities
6	Transportation	12	Public pensions/retirement funds

Nationwide municipal issues

The candidate was asked to answer questions from Ballotpedia regarding issues facing cities across America. The questions are in the left column and the candidate's responses are in the right column. Some questions provided multiple choices, which are noted after those questions.

Question	Response
Is it important for the city’s budget to be balanced?Answer options: Not important; Not important, but required by state law; A little important; A little important, but required by state law; Important; Very important	Important
Which level of government do you feel should set a minimum wage?Answer options: None, Local, State, Federal	Local
What do you think is the best way to improve a city’s public safety? Candidates could write their own answer or choose from the following options: Increased economic opportunities, Increased police presence/activity, Harsher penalties for offenders, Public outreach/education programs	Increased economic opportunities
How do you think your city should emphasize economic development? Candidates could write their own answer or choose from the following options: Changing zoning restrictions, Create a more competitive business climate, Focusing on small business development, Instituting a citywide minimum wage, Recruiting new businesses to your city, Regulatory and licensing reforms, and tax reform	Recruiting new businesses to your city
What is the one thing you’re most proud of about your city?	Welcoming community
What is the one thing you’d most like to change about your city?	Reduce the divide between the 'haves' and the 'have nots' by increased quality job opportunities.

Additional themes

Thurm's campaign website highlighted the following issues:

“	QUALITY JOBS IN GREENSBORO By bringing together the seven colleges and universities located in Greensboro, our thriving aviation industry, flourishing small businesses, advanced manufacturing, financial services companies, and a forward-thinking city government, we are poised to attract new, high-quality jobs to Greensboro. We must work in unison to promote Greensboro as a great place to do business. AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN GREENSBORO With the passage of the $25 million Housing Bond in 2016, Greensboro is poised to make real advancements in the quality and quantity of affordable housing. Working together with residents, business leaders, and nonprofit organizations in our community we must establish policies that will promote a reduction in substandard housing in Greensboro as well as the development of new alternatives. WELCOMING COMMUNITY Diversity is a part of the fabric of life in Greensboro with over 100 languages spoken and more than 75 religious denominations represented. Greensboro was the first city in North Carolina to prohibit anti-LGBT discrimination in housing, city employment and city services. Greensboro citizens deserve a City Council that is committed to equality in all aspects of life for all residents. TRANSPARENCY IN GREENSBORO’S GOVERNMENT Greensboro’s residents should expect openness, accountability, and honesty from their City Council. Through regular, accessible, face-to-face meetings with constituents, I will work to ensure that the residents of District 5 have an active voice on the City Council and that their concerns are addressed. It is only through transparency and accountability that we can have confidence in our city government.	”
—Tammi Thurm's campaign website, (2017)

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