Name as it appears on the ballot: Tisha S. Waddell

Previous elected offices held: Served on the Fayetteville City Council for two terms from 2017-2021

Age as of Election Day: 46

Occupation (employer, where you work, what you do): Global growth strategist, focused on helping businesses expand and strengthen their brands worldwide.

Best phone number and email for voters to reach you. Website and campaign social media:

1. Give us your elevator pitch in 200 words or less. Why are you running for this office? What makes you the most qualified candidate?

Since leaving the Council in 2021, Fayetteville has slipped further, with ethics complaints, lawsuits, stalled projects, and wasted tax dollars. We’ve seen taxes rise, infrastructure ignored, and trust in leadership collapse. The story told is “progress,” but without accountability, it’s an illusion. I’m returning to restore transparency, responsibility, and principled governance, so City Hall can once again serve with integrity and respect for the people.

As a two-term Council Member, I secured down payment assistance for first responders, advanced neighborhood improvements, and fought to protect public assets while ensuring the Council’s work remained open and accountable to residents. I’ve always chosen principle over position because leadership is about service, not personal gain.

My 90-day plan prioritizes ethics, fiscal responsibility, and economic growth that benefits our residents, rebuild trust, and deliver results Fayetteville can see and measure.

Fayetteville deserves a mayor who tells the truth, asks hard questions, and leads with integrity. I’m ready to serve.

2. What do you view as the three most pressing issues facing the city as a whole? How will you address them as mayor?

Family: Strong families are the foundation of strong communities. Too many of our families struggle with accessing safe housing, reliable childcare, and opportunities. As mayor, I will prioritize attainable housing, support programs that strengthen youth and family development, and ensure our policies build neighborhoods where families can thrive rather than be displaced.

Accountability: Trust in City Hall has eroded because decisions are too often made behind closed doors. I will require independent public audits of major projects, make Council actions clear and accessible to residents, and ensure that public comments receive timely responses. Citizens deserve leadership that is transparent, responsive, and respectful.

Fiscal Responsibility: Rising taxes and wasted dollars on stalled or poorly managed projects are burdening residents. I will evaluate the budget line by line to cut redundancies, invest in infrastructure, and condition economic incentives on local hiring and career pathways. Every tax dollar must be used wisely and visibly, with results delivered to the people.

3. What’s the best or most important thing the Fayetteville City Council has done in the past year? Additionally, name a decision you believe the council should have handled differently. Please explain your answers.

The most significant action taken by the Fayetteville City Council in the past year was the hiring of Ms. LaChelle Pullium as City Attorney. Her leadership is poised to transform how the Council conducts its work by providing guidance that is impartial, legally sound, and firmly rooted in policy and procedure. She executes the responsibilities of her office with dignity and precision, keeping the Council aligned with statutes and best practices. By maintaining this high standard of legal counsel, she is well-positioned to assist me as Mayor in strengthening the Council’s credibility and ensuring our policymaking remains focused, effective, and accountable to the people we serve.

4. Last year, the City of Fayetteville sued a contractor for abandoning over $6 million in construction projects. The city has since hired new contractors to finish the projects. What steps will you take to ensure Fayetteville is able to successfully complete capital projects in the future?

A decision I believe the Council should have handled differently is the rezoning request tied to the 7-Eleven near College Lakes. While rezoning is often complex, the way this case was managed left citizens feeling dismissed. Concerns were not fully explained or addressed, and the lack of clear communication made residents feel that decisions were being made for them rather than with them.

Citizens should not only feel heard, they should feel respected and recognized as partners in progress, not as victims of it. When residents are engaged openly, given clear explanations in plain language, and invited into genuine dialogue, trust grows. As mayor, I will ensure that rezoning and other major decisions are communicated clearly, with community input treated as a valued part of the process, rather than merely fulfilling a procedural requirement.

5. While overall crime in Fayetteville has decreased by around 13% this year, the number of homicides and incidents of juvenile crime have increased. The Fayetteville City Council recently enacted a youth curfew ordinance. Would you have voted in favor of it? How will you work to improve public safety and reduce crime in the city?

Research shows violence and crime often stem from a lack of self-control, which develops in environments of chaos and instability. Unless we address those environments, we won’t see the kind of lasting crime reduction that truly makes Fayetteville feel safer. That requires more than the City Council acting alone. It requires collaboration with faith-based organizations, nonprofits, community groups, and other relevant stakeholders to address the root causes of violence and instability.

As mayor, I will work with the Council, law enforcement, and community partners to establish clear metrics for public safety progress, whether that involves reducing violent crime, lowering repeat juvenile offenses, or improving response times. We can’t manage what we don’t measure, and citizens deserve to see how we define and track success.

I will also work to remove barriers that hinder the effective enforcement of existing policies, ensuring consistency and fairness across the city. Ultimately, I will advocate for sufficient funding for training, technology, and staffing, ensuring that officers are fully equipped to serve effectively and maintain public order.

6. How will you work to attract and retain new businesses and other development to Fayetteville? Name another municipality you believe has made smart decisions about sustainable growth and development, and describe what it has done that could be implemented in Fayetteville.

Fayetteville has to focus on growth that creates real opportunities for families while being fiscally responsible. That means linking incentives to measurable outcomes, such as job creation, workforce pathways, and neighborhood revitalization, rather than short-term deals that don’t deliver lasting value. We also need to clear barriers that slow responsible development, make permitting more efficient, and invest in the infrastructure that makes Fayetteville a competitive choice for employers.

A city we can learn from is Columbia, South Carolina, where the BullStreet District and Innovista projects have transformed underutilized land into thriving mixed-use developments, anchored by partnerships with the University of South Carolina. These projects have generated more than a billion dollars in private investment, created thousands of jobs, and diversified Columbia’s economy with tech, research, and entrepreneurial opportunities.

We can apply these lessons by reimagining corridors such as Bragg Boulevard, Owen Drive, and Person Street, building partnerships with local universities, and ensuring that every development deal prioritizes the needs of residents above all else. Residents deserve to see the return on every public dollar invested, and if done right, sustainable growth expands our tax base, strengthens our families, and positions Fayetteville as a city where businesses want to invest and people want to stay.

7. The county and city have often struggled to determine who is responsible for addressing homelessness. How would you work with the Cumberland County government and other community partners to decrease homelessness in the city?

Homelessness is not a single problem; it takes many forms. Some individuals face chronic homelessness tied to mental illness, addiction, or disability. Others experience transitional homelessness after a job loss, eviction, or health crisis. Still others face episodic homelessness, cycling in and out of stability, or hidden homelessness, living in cars, motels, or with relatives but without a secure home. The causes are just as varied, ranging from unaffordable housing and low wages to domestic violence, family breakdown, and gaps in veteran reintegration services.

That’s why Fayetteville must move beyond debates over jurisdiction. As mayor, I would work with Cumberland County, nonprofits, faith-based organizations, and the VA to implement a coordinated, results-driven approach to addressing these issues. A model worth exploring is Haven for Hope in San Antonio, which combines shelter with wraparound services, including mental health care, job training, addiction recovery, and pathways to permanent housing.

If we pool our resources, reduce duplication, and track measurable outcomes, we can address homelessness with both compassion and accountability. Every Fayetteville family deserves the dignity of stability, supported by leadership committed to addressing the full spectrum of need.