Elections in Cary, Fuquay-Varina aren’t over yet. Here’s when to expect a winner.
A week after Election Day, two Wake County towns still have local races without clear winners.
On Thursday, the Wake County Board of Elections will have a canvass meeting to review the results of the District D election in Cary and the race for an unexpired seat in Fuquay-Varina.
The meeting will count the remaining absentee and provisional ballots. The results will become official Friday morning.
Cary: Sarika Bansal vs. Rachel Jordan
The Town Council race between Cary’s District D candidates, Sarika Bansal and Rachel Jordan, is not over yet. Just 67 votes separated the two after last week’s runoff election.
The women faced off Nov. 7 after Jordan called for a runoff following the Oct. 10 election. Bansal finished first in October but did not get 50% plus one vote needed to win outright
The unofficial results of the Nov. 7 runoff show Bansal leading Jordan:
▪ Sarika Bansal: 2,746 votes, 50%
▪ Rachel Jordan: 2,679 votes, 49%
The two newcomers defeated District D incumbent Ryan Eades, who was appointed this year to fill the seat of Ya Liu, who now represents District 21 in the state House of Representatives.
In a video posted to Facebook, Jordan said she was “overwhelmed” by the work of the campaign but grateful for the support.
“I am so thankful for the amazing stories that so many Cary residents told me about their lives and what was important to them,” she said. “Whether I win this race or not, I’ve spent most of my time here in Cary trying to do what I can to make it better and trying to get more people involved, and that is not going to stop.”
Bansal expressed gratitude Oct. 10 on Facebook saying, “your unwavering support and trust motivated me to work hard on the campaign trail. To those who were on the fence, I will continue to work hard to win your trust.”
District D includes west Cary and part of Chatham County and is a diverse, growing area. The district has about 25,000 voters in Wake County and 4,000 in Chatham County.
The winner will be one of two newcomers on the Cary Town Council alongside Michelle Craig, who defeated four-term Council member Don Frantz in October. Lori Bush kept her at-large council seat, and Mayor Harold Weinbrecht ran unopposed.
Fuquay-Varina: Elizabeth Parent vs. Jason Wunsch
In Fuquay-Varina, the Board of Commissioners had three open seats including the mayor’s unopposed seat.
Two seats were for four-year terms, while one was for an unexpired, two-year term. Candidates Jason Ora Wunsch and Elizabeth Parent faced off for that seat.
The results show Wunsch leading Parent by 28 votes:
▪ Jason Wunsch: 2,886 votes, 50%
▪ Elizabeth Parent: 2,858 votes, 49.5%
If elected, Wunsch would be one of two former commissioners back on the board. Charlie Adocok, who served from 2007 to 2018, won his election Nov. 7.
Wunsch served on the Board of Commissioners from 2013-22. He is the current chair of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. His plans for the town include combating traffic congestion and navigating growth. He also runs a popular Facebook page, Today in the Quay, highlighting community members and events in town.
A newcomer, Parent would be one of the youngest members elected to the Board of Commissioners. She is a community advocate and former secretary for the Artists Alliance of the Triangle.
Parent said she wants to work to diversify the town’s housing options and help implement a strategic affordable housing plan, which Fuquay-Varina does not have. Parent ran as a progressive candidate for the board, which has been criticized for being more conservative, particularly on issues of affordable housing and cultural awareness.
In 2021, Fuquay-Varina Police handcuffed then-14-year-old Malcolm Ziglar and accused him of stealing a bike. Despite residents’ concerns and calls for a cultural assessment of the town’s government, the board, under then-Mayor John Byrne, did not take action.
Failed bond referendum
On Nov. 7, Fuquay-Varina voters rejected a $60 million bond referendum that would have funded parks and recreation projects.
The bond would have added two fields, pickleball courts, resurfacing of trails, and more parking to existing parks. Also included was the creation of a 70-acre park with baseball, softball and soccer fields. Other projects included enhancements to Hilltop Needmore Town Park & Preserve and to the Fuquay-Varina Community Center.
The bond would have raised property taxes for Fuquay-Varina homeowners by 8 cents per $100 of assessed property value, or $224 a month for the average owner.
The town released a statement saying in the coming months “our elected officials, management, and staff will work collaboratively to determine the best way to approach these projects.”
