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City elections in Durham, North Carolina (2021)
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Municipal • How to run for office |
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2023 →
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| 2021 Durham elections |
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| Election dates |
| Filing deadline: August 13, 2021 |
| Primary election: October 5, 2021 General election: November 2, 2021 |
| Election stats |
| Offices up: Mayor and city council |
| Total seats up: 4 (click here for mayoral elections) |
| Election type: Nonpartisan |
| Other municipal elections |
| U.S. municipal elections, 2021 |
The city of Durham, North Carolina, held general elections for mayor and city council on November 2, 2021. A primary was scheduled for October 5, 2021. The filing deadline for this election was August 13, 2021.
Click here to learn more about the city's mayoral election.
Elections
Click on the tabs below to show more information about those topics.
Candidates and results
City council
Ward 1
General election
General election for Durham City Council Ward 1
Incumbent DeDreana Freeman defeated Marion Johnson in the general election for Durham City Council Ward 1 on November 2, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | DeDreana Freeman (Nonpartisan) | 71.1 | 21,408 |
 | Marion Johnson (Nonpartisan)  | 28.7 | 8,631 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 84 | ||
| Total votes: 30,123 | |||
| = 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
Nonpartisan primary for Durham City Council Ward 1
Incumbent DeDreana Freeman and Marion Johnson defeated Elizabeth Takla and Waldo Fenner in the primary for Durham City Council Ward 1 on October 5, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | DeDreana Freeman (Nonpartisan) | 69.5 | 13,658 |
| ✔ | | Marion Johnson (Nonpartisan) | 26.9 | 5,292 |
| Elizabeth Takla (Nonpartisan) | 2.1 | 413 | ||
| Waldo Fenner (Nonpartisan) | 1.5 | 297 | ||
| Total votes: 19,660 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Ward 2
General election
General election for Durham City Council Ward 2
Incumbent Mark-Anthony Middleton defeated Sylvester Williams in the general election for Durham City Council Ward 2 on November 2, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Mark-Anthony Middleton (Nonpartisan) | 87.5 | 25,993 |
 | Sylvester Williams (Nonpartisan) | 12.0 | 3,555 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.5 | 158 | ||
| Total votes: 29,706 | |||
| = 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 Durham City Council Ward 2
Incumbent Mark-Anthony Middleton and Sylvester Williams defeated Robert Curtis, Jr. in the primary for Durham City Council Ward 2 on October 5, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Mark-Anthony Middleton (Nonpartisan) | 85.9 | 16,510 |
| ✔ | | Sylvester Williams (Nonpartisan) | 9.1 | 1,748 |
| Robert Curtis, Jr. (Nonpartisan) | 5.0 | 966 | ||
| Total votes: 19,224 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Ward 3
General election
General election for Durham City Council Ward 3
Leonardo Williams defeated AJ Williams in the general election for Durham City Council Ward 3 on November 2, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Leonardo Williams (Nonpartisan) | 50.9 | 15,122 |
 | AJ Williams (Nonpartisan) | 48.9 | 14,529 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 79 | ||
| Total votes: 29,730 | |||
| = 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
The primary election was canceled. Leonardo Williams and AJ Williams advanced from the primary for Durham City Council Ward 3.
Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: North Carolina elections, 2021
October 5, 2021
November 2, 2021
What was at stake?
Report a story for this election
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Candidate survey
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About the city
- See also: Durham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in Durham County, North Carolina. As of 2020, its population was 283,506.
City government
- See also: Council-manager government
The city of Durham uses a council-manager system. In this form of municipal government, an elected city council—which includes the mayor and serves as the city's primary legislative body—appoints a chief executive called a city manager to oversee day-to-day municipal operations and implement the council's policy and legislative initiatives.[1]
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
| Demographic Data for Durham, North Carolina | ||
|---|---|---|
| Durham | North Carolina | |
| Population | 283,506 | 10,439,388 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 113 | 48,623 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 48.4% | 67.6% |
| Black/African American | 37.5% | 21.4% |
| Asian | 5.4% | 3% |
| Native American | 0.3% | 1.2% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Other (single race) | N/A | 3.2% |
| Multiple | 5.1% | 3.6% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 13.8% | 9.5% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 89.7% | 88.5% |
| College graduation rate | 51.2% | 32% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $61,962 | $56,642 |
| Persons below poverty level | 14.2% | 14% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2015-2020). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
See also
| Durham, North Carolina | North Carolina | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
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External links
Footnotes
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