Fayetteville will be represented by three new council members, and possibly a new mayor, after the municipal elections this fall.
The council is expected to shift significantly next year, as Council Members Mario Benavente, Courtney Banks-McLaughlin and Kathy Jensen have decided not to file for reelection, and instead are running for mayor. Mayor Mitch Colvin is also seeking reelection; if none of them become mayor, at least four of the ten seats on city council will change hands (the mayor is considered a member of the council).
With his bid for mayor, Benavante, who has served on the council since 2022 and is known for advocating for police reform, leaves the District 3 seat open. Two candidates have thrown their hat in the ring to replace him: Jeremy Wright and Antonio Jones.
Jones previously served on the Fayetteville City Council, representing District 3 for the remainder of former Council Member Tisha Waddell’s term after she resigned in 2021. Jones ran for the seat in 2022, but lost to Benavente by just six votes, or half a percentage point. Wright ran for city council in 2017, but took a break from politics after he lost.
As the only two candidates vying for the District 3 council seat, Jones and Wright will compete in the general election on Nov. 4. Read on for an overview of the candidates.
Jeremy Wright
While not a native of Fayetteville, Wright received his bachelor’s degree from Fayetteville State University in 1995 and has lived in the city for over three decades. He received his master of divinity degree from the United Theological Seminary in 2017. Wright is also the founder of AsONE Fellowship Inc., a nonprofit organization that organizes an annual prayer walk — an ecumenical event where people walk through Fayetteville and engage in joint prayer for the city, its residents and institutions. He describes the walk as the “one of the largest standalone prayer walks in the country,” with thousands of participants.
After taking an eight-year hiatus from politics following an unsuccessful council run in 2017, he said he’s now ready to get back in the game.
“Work was a lot, I had some things that personally just kind of took me out of the political realm,” Wright told CityView about his previous council run. “But I just feel like it’s time now with all that we’re facing and the unique skill set that I bring to the table.”
Wright is running on a platform focused on fiscal responsibility, infrastructure improvements and affordable housing. He believes the city council has been neglectful with recent capital project challenges, such as the construction management of Mazarick Park Tennis Center. He said the city needs leaders who are able to follow through.
“The last council did do some things, but we have a few projects that just have gone unattended,” Wright said. “Those projects that we have within the city’s powers, we need to go through and finish those projects so that it’s not being wasteful of our taxpayers dollars.”
Wright also thinks the council could do more to provide affordable housing for residents, as well as to enhance infrastructure development. Specifically, while he said he appreciates strides made by the current council in flood management and sewer infrastructure improvement, he believes “we need to give a little bit more focus to that in some of our communities.”
“District 3 is one of those areas where we have found certain flood areas, so infrastructure is the thing that we need to focus on quite a bit for us,” he added.
As for the most pressing issues facing the city as a whole, Wright said he believes there is a lack of unity and collaboration among the city’s leadership. He pointed to the 10-candidate mayoral race, which includes three sitting council members and Colvin. He believes his experience bringing people from different faiths together with the prayer walk will serve him well in unifying the city council.
“I think that now it’s the opportunity to bring that to the table so that we can resolve some of our issues politically,” he said. “Because in the past we’ve kind of been divided by the fact that we call ourselves different things, but we have far more in common than we have that separates us, and I don’t think that that’s been at the forefront of what we’ve done in the past.”
Antonio Jones
Born and raised in Fayetteville, Jones is a graduate of Pine Forest High School and Fayetteville State University, where he received his bachelor’s degree. He also holds a master’s degree in public health from Walden University. Jones was an epidemiologist with the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services for over a decade, where he supervised regional offices in Cumberland County. He has also served on numerous local boards and commissions, including the Cumberland County Juvenile Crime Prevention Council and Fayetteville Planning Commission.
Jones is also a U.S. Air Force veteran. He currently manages Jones Realty, a real estate company, and Jones Ministries International, a non-denominational ministry that he co-founded with his wife.
Jones said he is running to restore residents’ faith in the council. He believes residents have become disillusioned with the current governing body.
“Why I am running and my main focus once elected, both can be partly summarized in this short phrase, competent leadership that is restoring hope,” Jones told CityView. “This is not a campaign slogan, this is simply a destination and something that is needed to maximize the opportunities and possibilities that we will now have before us in this season of great change.”
Jones also wants to bring stability and unity to the council as new members come on board.
“I am running because District 3 needs competent representation during what will easily be some of the most interesting 2 to 4 years as it relates to a Council body shift and the possibility of a new Mayor,” Jones wrote in a message. “My running for such represents my ability to build consensus, the capacity to work with anyone, and the assurance of professional representation that will resist interjecting personal feelings or exhibiting unprofessional demeanor.”
Jones believes some of the most pressing issues facing both District 3 and the city as a whole are a lack of resources for those experiencing homelessness, gun violence, walkability, city beautification and the protection of historic neighborhoods and residents’ property rights. Jones also wants to focus on “collaborating with county entities, fiscal and project management, governmental accountability and increased transparency and the ability to create and manage change, economic development [and] increased youth programming.”
Overall, Jones emphasized the need for a change on city council.
“I have heard the cry of this city and from some residents alike, who are simply fed up, tired, fearful to go out past dark, have experienced the stalling of projects, and feel as if there is no hope for real change or continued improvement, hence the losing of hope,” Jones said. “Competent representation, with a history of results, serving with no motives, is an extension of why I am running and one way I can counter the aforementioned.”
Government accountability reporter Evey Weisblat can be reached at eweisblat@cityviewnc.com or 216-527-3608.
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