Marikay Abuzuaiter

Marikay Abuzuaiter

Candidate, Mayor of Greensboro

Greensboro City Council At-large

Tenure

2011 - Present

Term ends

2025

Years in position

14

Report an officeholder change

Elections and appointments

Last elected

July 26, 2022

Next election

November 4, 2025

Education

High school

Middlesboro High School

Bachelor's

Greensboro College, 1983

Personal

Religion

Protestant Christian

Profession

Retired

Contact

Official Twitter

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Instagram

Campaign YouTube

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Marikay Abuzuaiter is an at-large member of the Greensboro City Council in North Carolina. She assumed office in 2011. Her current term ends in 2025.

Abuzuaiter is running for election for Mayor of Greensboro in North Carolina. She is on the ballot in the general election on November 4, 2025. She advanced from the primary on October 7, 2025.

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

Biography

Email editor@ballotpedia.org to notify us of updates to this biography.

Marikay Abuzuaiter graduated from Middlesboro High School. She earned a bachelor's degree in music from Greensboro College in 1983. At the time of her 2025 campaign, Abuzuaiter had retired from her position as the owner of Mahi's Restaurant. Her experience includes 13 years of employment at UNC Greensboro, along with leadership roles as chair of the Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation, chair of the Municipal Planning Organization/Transportation Advisory Committee, and vice-chair of the Piedmont Triad Regional Council. Abuzuaiter has been affiliated with the Kiwanis Club of Greensboro, Confident Girls Rising, and Casa Azul.

Elections

2025

See also: Mayoral election in Greensboro, North Carolina (2025)

General election

General election for Mayor of Greensboro

Marikay Abuzuaiter and Robbie Perkins are running in the general election for Mayor of Greensboro on November 4, 2025.

		Candidate
		Marikay Abuzuaiter (Nonpartisan)
	Submit photo	Robbie Perkins (Nonpartisan)

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Mayor of Greensboro

Marikay Abuzuaiter and Robbie Perkins defeated Mark Cummings and Akir Khan in the primary for Mayor of Greensboro on October 7, 2025.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Marikay Abuzuaiter (Nonpartisan)	39.9	8,563
✔	Submit photo	Robbie Perkins (Nonpartisan)	32.5	6,976
		Mark Cummings (Nonpartisan)	17.8	3,825
		Akir Khan (Nonpartisan)	9.7	2,091

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. Source	Total votes: 21,455
= 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

Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements. 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 At-large (3 seats)

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

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Yvonne Johnson (Nonpartisan)	25.2	19,212
✔		Marikay Abuzuaiter (Nonpartisan)	20.1	15,359
✔		Hugh Holston (Nonpartisan)	15.7	11,959
	Submit photo	Katie Rossabi (Nonpartisan)	14.9	11,406
	Submit photo	Tracy Furman (Nonpartisan)	11.9	9,104
		Linda Wilson (Nonpartisan)	11.5	8,783
		Other/Write-in votes	0.7	536

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 76,359
= 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 At-large (3 seats)

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

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Yvonne Johnson (Nonpartisan)	25.0	23,925
✔		Marikay Abuzuaiter (Nonpartisan)	16.4	15,697
✔	Submit photo	Tracy Furman (Nonpartisan)	10.3	9,820
✔		Hugh Holston (Nonpartisan)	10.0	9,621
✔	Submit photo	Katie Rossabi (Nonpartisan)	9.8	9,404
✔		Linda Wilson (Nonpartisan)	9.6	9,152
		Franca Jalloh (Nonpartisan)	6.9	6,616
		Melodi Fentress (Nonpartisan)	5.8	5,560
	Submit photo	Dustin Keene (Nonpartisan)	3.8	3,654
	Submit photo	Taffy L. Buchanan (Nonpartisan)	2.4	2,331

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 95,780
= 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. The following candidates ran in the general election for the at-large seats on the Greensboro City Council.

Greensboro City Council At-Large, General Election, 2017
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Yvonne Johnson Incumbent	26.59%	21,390
Marikay Abuzuaiter Incumbent	19.56%	15,733
Michelle Kennedy	16.45%	13,236
Mike Barber Incumbent	16.33%	13,134
Dave Wils	10.96%	8,814
T. Dianne Bellamy-Small	9.53%	7,666
Write-in votes	0.6%	480
Total Votes		80,453
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections, "11/07/2017 Official Municipal Election Results - Guilford," accessed November 22, 2017

The following candidates ran in the primary election for the at-large seats on the Greensboro City Council.

Greensboro City Council At-Large, Primary Election, 2017
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Yvonne Johnson Incumbent	22.42%	10,639
Marikay Abuzuaiter Incumbent	14.65%	6,952
Mike Barber Incumbent	11.29%	5,357
Michelle Kennedy	11.26%	5,345
Dave Wils	7.93%	3,761
T. Dianne Bellamy-Small	7.03%	3,336
Dan Jackson	5.84%	2,772
Irving Allen	4.63%	2,196
James Ingram	3.00%	1,424
Lindy Perry-Garnette	2.88%	1,366
M.A. Bakie	2.79%	1,325
Tijuana Hayes	2.57%	1,219
Jodi Bennett-Bradshaw	1.41%	671
Andy Nelson	1.19%	563
Sylvine Hill	1.12%	530
Total Votes		47,456
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections, "10/10/2017 Official Primary Election Results - Guilford," accessed October 27, 2017

Endorsements

Abuzuaiter received endorsements from the following in 2017:

• Equality NC
• Professional Firefighters of Greensboro Local 947
• Replacements Ltd PAC

Click [show] on the right for information about other elections in which this candidate ran.

2015 See also: Greensboro, North Carolina municipal elections, 2015 The city of Greensboro, North Carolina, held elections for mayor and city council on November 3, 2015. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was August 7, 2015. In the at-large race, incumbents Yvonne Johnson, Mike Barber and Marikay Abuzuaiter won re-election over challengers Marc Ridgill, Sylvine Hill and Brian Hoss in the general election on November 3, 2015. Greensboro City Council At-large, General election, 2015 Candidate Vote % Votes Yvonne Johnson Incumbent 30.4% 15,589 Marikay Abuzuaiter Incumbent 26.0% 13,338 Mike Barber Incumbent 24.4% 12,515 Marc Ridgill 9.3% 4,792 Sylvine Hill 5.5% 2,817 Brian Hoss 3.9% 1,994 Write-in votes 0.59% 305 Total Votes 51,350 Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Official general election results", accessed November 16, 2015

Campaign themes

2025

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Marikay Abuzuaiter completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Abuzuaiter'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 am Marikay Abuzuaiter, Mayor Pro Tem of the City of Greensboro, NC. I was elected in 2011 to an at large position. Having served on the Greensboro city Council for 14 years, I have the knowledge, experience and commitment to keeping Greensboro on the trajectory of success that we are experiencing with the major economic development announcements that have been coming for the last couple of years. Our city needs someone who has been involved in the meetings, discussions, and regional initiatives that have helped lift up our community. I am that person! Having served on and been elected chair of many regional initiatives, I am confident that I can continue to collaborate with our local and regional partners. I am chair of the Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation, Chair of the Municipal Planning Organization Transportation and I am Vice Chair of the Piedmont Triad Regional Council. My local and regional elected officials are the ones who keep electing me to chair and vice chair these organizations. I am honored and I want to continue that momentum of economic success.

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 is a must! If we do not have a safe community, we are not going to receive the economic development that we desire. Companies are not going to come to unsafe communities. The companies we have attracted have already checked out our public safety initiatives, and I am proud to say that our police department is Gold CALEA rated, and our fire department is ISO 1 rated. Our GM 911 receives national and global awards consistently. These ratings may not seem important to some people, but they are huge. Companies look for places to move, begin or start their business. I am proud to say that I have led many initiatives to take care of our public safety personnel – our police, fire, and GM911.
• Infrastructure is a key component of economic development. They actually go hand-in-hand. Without proper infrastructure - water, sewer, roads, sidewalks and many other necessities, it is doubtful that any company would look at our city as a place to move or begin a business. Not many people realize how important logistics are to a company with my work as chair of the MPO/transportation, our group was able to approve the grants and state and city monies that were used to finish our urban loop. The urban loop has opened up amazing pockets of future development and has shown companies how Greensboro is the right place for them to come logistically to move their product from one place to another with safety and efficiency.
• Housing. With all of the companies coming, we are certainly in need of housing. We are not only in need of attainable and affordable housing, we are also in need of all levels of income housing. I know that we need infill development, but we also need single-family home housing along with multifamily. Greensboro has made great strides trying to make the process for developers and builders much easier. While there are many rules and regulations, we cannot change because they are state mandated, we have been trying to make our permit process much more efficient, so developers and builders can move quickly to build the housing that is needed.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I am passionate about making sure that the ordinances and policies that we put into place have safety as the top priority for our community. It is certainly true that we must think about all of the policies that affect our city - safety, environmental issues, and the well-being of our residents.

Ordinances and policies that ensure our citizens are safe as always been my number one priority.

Greensboro has also always been well ahead of other municipalities and making sure that we are environmentally respectful, and that we make policies that ensure our sustainability.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

Oh, my, there are so many people I look up to - many of them have passed on. I would say that I have gained knowledge from each of them, so I really do not want to say who I look up to because it would take me hours to list them all.

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

I believe that an elected official must be one who has been with and involved in the community it represents. It is hard for me to believe that there are those who campaign who have never stepped foot in certain areas in the community. I believe it is incumbent upon any elected official to research and know what their community is all about

Of course, elected officials should be of the highest character, integrity, and be able to be honest and fair with their constituents. We have all certainly read and studied ethics and how elected officials must follow certain guidelines.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

Even though the mayor of Greensboro is a part-time position, I believe the core responsibilities the mayor must follow is to guide their city council into a cohesive team. There is so much that a city can do to move forward in its mission. One needs a mayor who is a true leader. A true leader does not try to take all of the credit for the success of a city. A true leader would be one who would value and respect their team and appreciate the fact that everything is a collaboration.

What legacy would you like to leave?

I would like to see a legacy of being the council person and the mayor who helped transition and mentor a new Council, who always stayed involved in her community and who helped make Greensboro the safest and most productive city in the Southeast!

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

The first historical event that I recall was the shooting of John F. Kennedy,Jr. our president. I was in first grade at the time, six years old and I was going to a Catholic school. I will never forget the hysterical crying of the nuns. He was the first Catholic president and they were all so very excited. I will never forget that and we were all sent home and we all had watched everything unfold on TV.

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

I worked in a hospital when I was 14 years old. I worked every summer through high school.

What is your favorite book? Why?

All of them. I am not being sarcastic, it is just a love of mine, and I am a voracious reader.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

Wonder Woman! She was brave, courageous, assertive, and solved every problem presented to her!

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

I think we have all had struggles. I think one of the most frustrating struggles that I have is when someone totally dismisses my thought or comment and then refuses to discuss the issue. That is tough. It is rare that happens, but I can never figure out why someone won’t even discuss an issue because their way is the only way. I think we can all come to an agreement on just about everything.

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

Being a leader also means being involved in and present in the community. Not just in part of the community, but in all of the community. A true leader works with everyone and does not pretend to know what is best for the community, but asks the community what they would like to see.

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 the city manage should both have a true sense of vision of the city. For instance, Greensboro’s vision is to be a community with endless economic opportunities, and an exceptional quality of life. This is the vision that the entire city council and the city manager have agreed upon. While the city manager does not have a vote, his or her opinion should be considered. The city manager has the expertise and the credentials to run a city. The mayor has been elected by the community to represent their wishes. While a mayor may make tough decisions at times, it should always be a decision made after hearing from the experts, the city manager, the community and the city Council.

If the mayor in your city is not a member of the city council and oversees the day-to-day administration of the city government, what do you believe is the ideal relationship between the mayor and city council?

The mayor is a member of the city Council in the city of Greensboro.

What do you love most about your city?

Greensboro is a unique city. This is one of the reasons I truly love living here. I have lived here my entire adult life and I would call Greensboro a very welcoming city to businesses, residents, potential residents, and visitors who attend all of our amazing venues, sports events, museums and theatres. Greensboro is very easy to travel through from one end to the other. With the urban loop, you can get to anywhere in Greensboro or to any of the highways within 10 minutes. I am proud of our city, and I believe that the mayor should be one of the biggest cheerleaders for their city.

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

Public safety and housing. The technology for public safety has skyrocketed over the last 20 years or so. Much of this is currently being used in order to reduce crime with the uptick in violence, Greensboro is implementing many new ways of reducing crime. We have one which is the real time information center that companies, and even small businesses can join into. The actual cameras that are inside the business go to a police monitoring station and the police can watch in real time the incident. Not only has it given businesses, peace of mind. It is reducing crimes, such as shoplifting, robberies, and even assaults. Many. cities are going through public safety issues, yet I believe that Greensboro is leading the way and how to fight crime. The need for housing - Greensboro tends to be unique because we are seeing a trajectory of success that we have not seen for years. This creates an immense need for housing. I support the City Manager’s “road to 10,000”. This is his goal and challenge to our community. Greensboro is leading by example by doing what we can to streamline our permitting process so that developers and builders can get to work much quicker.

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

Collaboration. I believe that the city and the state should put aside partisan politics and do what is best for the city which only helps lift up the state, and do what is best for the state which only lifts up the city. One reason I was thankful that Greensboro was not a partisan city Council, was that everyone on city council should be more concerned about the residence than about party politics.

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

The ideal relationship between the city and the federal government is one that is also in collaboration. Greensboro strives to do what is right for everyone, but especially in the federal government. It seems that partisan politics sometimes get in the way.

I pride myself for being able to discuss the needs of Greensboro to our federal government representatives, even if they are of a different political party.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the mayor's office and law enforcement?

I have always had an excellent relationship with our public safety personnel – especially our law enforcement. As a previous small business owner for 22 years, I not only rely on public safety for my business, but also for my residence. I have built a solid reputation with our police, fire and GM 911 personnel. I will continue those relationships as mayor. And I believe that the mayor should always lift up those who protect them and their city on a daily basis.

Candidates hear many personal stories from voters. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching or memorable?

There was one where a young lady, perhaps in her 30s, came up to me and told me she had lifted herself out of poverty because of the programs that the city of Greensboro offered free, that workforce development offered free, and then she went onto the Nussbaum Center for entrepreneurship and started her own business with the services they provide there.

What is an accomplishment that you are proud of?

I am most proud of leading the initiative to give substantial raises to our police officers. All of them, not just our new hires. For several years, our department had been losing officers to other municipalities because the other were paying much more in the way of incentives and salary. We had extremely talented officers leaving for higher pay.

City council had talked about it for over a year. The day that our police chief came and spoke before Council saying that our city was in crisis because we had lost so many officers to other cities, I became angry. We had talked the subject to death and I was tired of hearing that we were over 130 officers short.

I made the motion that evening to raise our officers to a comparable level like our peer cities. My motion passed on a 7-2 vote.

I am most proud of this as we now have a full police officer department. I made the motion on April 4, 2023.

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

Marikay Abuzuaiter did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2017

Abuzuaiter's campaign website highlighted the following issues:

“	INFRASTRUCTURE Marikay believes that a modern and well-maintained Infrastructure ties in to Economic Development that brings employers to the City. Maintaining and improving our water and sewer infrastructure along with our transportation needs and road maintenance serve the public in various ways. One of the most visible ways she ensures that our infrastructure is maintained is by serving as chairwoman of the Municipal Planning Organization that brings in county and surrounding municipality representatives monthly to discuss improvements in transportation, road improvements. bicycle and pedestrian concerns and projected solutions. PUBLIC SAFETY Marikay is passionate about making sure that Greensboro residents feel safe and secure in their homes and places of employment. She is continuously active in many policing initiatives. Marikay is most proud of her involvement with the Family Justice Center and watched it take shape from its beginning into a model program and facility that has greatly reduced the incidences of domestic violence in our city and our county. Marikay is equally supportive of the Fire Department. Its ISO1 rating ensures that the citizens of Greensboro has one of the lowest homeowner insurance rates available. Our Fire Department has outreach initiatives with programs to replace smoke detectors, install smoke detectors and CO2 monitors and has several programs to teach families and children about Fire safety. She supports the critical GM911Public Safety division. Dispatchers are the first to speak with those who are in distress and are trained in National, State and Local Programs. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT As a member of the City Council’s Economic Development Committee, Marikay has supported and helped plan many Economic Development Endeavors. A few of those are: shovel ready site implementation with a revolving loan pool for companies willing to improve sites, focusing on workforce development needs from company input and focus on public investment on high impact priority projects in targeted areas, corridors and impact zones. QUALITY OF LIFE While Marikay believes that Public Safety, Infrastructure and Economic Development are most important for a healthy city, she also believes that residents should have places to enjoy their family time. She is a proponent of our Parks and Recreation department our Public Libraries. Greensboro’s fabulous parks allow our families to have time to enjoy our green spaces, recreation centers and trails. With a top-rated Library system, Marikay believes we encourage our residents to further their knowledge and enjoy reading and multimedia available throughout the City.	”
—Marikay Abuzuaiter's campaign website, (2017)

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