Voters Push Younger Candidates Through in City Council Primaries

CHARLOTTE, NC – Charlotte City Council will have a different look next year.

Voters put a younger and more diverse group of candidates through to the general election.

“There’s obviously change going on in this town,” says At-Large Democratic City Council candidate Braxton Winston.

A strong showing in Tuesday’s primary means Winston, a newcomer, could find himself as one of Charlotte’s youngest political leaders.

The 34-year-old was the face of protests in Charlotte almost a year ago.

“The death of Keith Lamont Scott was a spark that ignited a whole bed of tinder, that had been building over years and generations,” Winston explains.

Also moving on to the general election in the at-large race is current District Five Councilwoman Dimple Ajmera. She’s 31.

“As we grow at a very fast pace, you see new faces coming to our city and they need to be able to say that they still have a voice at the decision-making table,” Ajmera says.

Three-term city council member Claire Fallon didn’t make the cut in Tuesday’s primary. Also gone after 12 years is District One representative Patsy Kinsey.

She was defeated by 34-year-old Larken Egleston.

“I think there was a bit of a rising tide mentality, where enough of us ran, that are under 40, and bringing a different perspective that it, we all helped each other by kinda all being in it together,” Egleston says.

32-year-old Parker Cains is running for city council at-large on the Republican side.

“I think that the independent vote, the unaffiliated, and this influx of new people to the city is gonna really drive a different voter turnout that we expected. Much like you saw last night,” Cains says.