Caroline Daly
November 22, 2023
The election season for Durham mayor and city council were intense at times. I was not surprised by the outcome of the mayoral election because Leonardo Williams came out on top which was expected. However, my reporting focused more on the city council elections. Shelia Huggins was the candidate I focused on, her and I developed a personal relationship throughout the election and we talked frequently about her campaign and life in general which I enjoyed. I appreciated the opportunity to make meaningful contributions to the community and report on issues that are important to the residents of Durham. Keeping in touch with Huggins about Durham’s issues taught me about artificial intelligence and jobs, we talked at length about that being a key issue in Durham. Huggins ended her campaign after the primary election – citing low voter turnout. I think she would have been a great council member because she has a plethora of experience and is from Durham so she knows the area well. She has lived in Durham for 20 years with her family. As I described in one of my previous articles about Huggins, she has also been an involved community member and worked in three different city departments over the past nine years. I think Huggins will have a successful political career in the future, she is extremely experienced and has great ideas to create better paying jobs for Durham residents. Throughout the process of covering Huggins and the Durham elections, I learned so much about Durham that I didn’t know before. Participating in this allowed me to experience what it would be like to be a community journalist in the current journalism field and I am grateful for the opportunity.
Edited by Sophia Fanning