Jackson County residents met candidates running in the local elections, registered to vote and got a free voter photo IDs Sept. 27, at a nonpartisan civic forum hosted by the Town of Webster and the Jackson County Board of Elections.
Over a dozen tents and as many organizations like the Student Democracy Coalition, the No King’s Protest Planning Committee, the Webster Board of Commissioners and more lined the sidewalk and field adjacent to the gazebo in the center of Webster Park.
The event was close to the anniversary from Hurricane Helene devastation of the region and Webster Mayor Leigh Ann Young said that it is a good reminder how the community can come together. She was happy that candidates from both parties agreed to participate.
Webster and the Jackson County Board of Elections do not endorse participating candidates, organizations or viewpoints. There were no scheduled speeches, official debates or question-and-answer sessions.
In the gazebo picnic area, tables were setup with voter registration applications that they could then hand into the voter registration tent toward the entrance to register on the day. Over 15 people registered to vote and around 60 people attended the event including candidates, commissioners, and staff.
“We wanted this to be a non-partisan event. The Town of Webster doesn’t have anybody running in this election, so, we’re able to kind of stand back in that way,” Young said.
Young added that the town and the Board of Elections split the costs.
“And there wasn’t a lot,” Young said. “The space just lends itself to this. And other than manpower and hauling in a bunch of tables and tents, there wasn’t great expense for this event; Just a lot of behind-the-scenes organizing.”
Mayor Young also went into detail concerning the new polling place at WCU’s Health and Human Sciences Building and the increasingly concerning statistics of students voting this midterm compared to last year.
“I’m glad that WCU students have something a little bit closer,” Young said. “…Something that doesn’t require them walking along the side of a busy highway. I think those are safety concerns.”
Young voters, ages 18 to 25, made up the smallest percentage of voters in 2024 North Carolina general election, according to the NC Board of Elections.
David J. Rogers is running for the Jackson County Board of Commissioner Chair against Democrat Marcia Almond.
Rogers, a longtime resident of the county and owner of automotive business in Sylva built his campaign on the promise of lowing or maintaining local taxes and cutting the county budget. Rogers is a long-time resident of the county who works as a coach and has his own automobile business.
“My main issue is the budget,” Rogers said. “I’m really focused on helping people stay in their homes by giving attention to taxes and that’s hit some hard strikes. So, I’m putting a lot of focus on not raising taxes and making sure stuff happens.”
Rogers also commented on the new polling place at the HHS Building on the WCU campus.
“I wish we would have left it at the campus. The one they put in now is much further away than the previous one at the University Center. I know they took it away for money, but now we’ve got one back that’s gonna be just as much if not more money,” Rogers said. “I want it to be easy for everybody; not one or the other. And then that way the best person wins.”
The Republican Party pushed to move the polling place to the HHS building because of parking concerns. WCU has provided over 20 parking sports for voters and curbside voting at the HHS building in light of these complaints.
Casey Walawender is running for Jackson County Board of Commissioners to represent District 1 in North Carolina as a more moderate democratic candidate. Walawender is running against Republican Steven J. Sutton. Walawender is a proponent of public libraries, policy transparency, accessibility in education and strengthening community relationships.
“For us, as individuals, especially like I’ve been so hyperlocal, and so when it comes to the state level, it makes it feel a little more difficult to understand what’s really happening,” Walawender said. “It’s because we’re just having people say stuff really far in the party line.”
She also commented on the state’s motives for the three constitutional amendments on this election’s ballot.
The amendments are a Property Tax Levy Limit Amendment which would require the state legislature to pass laws limiting the maximum amount that property taxes may increase.
The Reduce Income Tax Rate Cap from 7% to 3.5% Amendment would lower the North Carolina Constitution’s maximum allowable state income tax rate from 7% to 3.5%. Therefore, the state government would be prohibited from increasing the state income tax rate above 3.5% without voter approval of another constitutional amendment.
Lastly, the Voter Identification Requirement Amendment, or the SAVE ACT, is a federal bill bolstered by the Trump Administration that would require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship to register for federal elections and mandate photo ID for voting; it passed the House in 2026 but has not become law.
“And it’s kind of hard to understand why the state is trying to do it [the SAVE Act],” Walawender said. “…We have zero statistics in our country telling us that this is happening. We don’t have undocumented people voting in large numbers and swing votes.”
In her opinion, this is about minority voters, specifically female voters and college students.
The person in charge of the voter registration tent, representative of the Indivisible Common Ground group Joan Parks commented on voter registration.
“We’ve been trying to get young voters at the polls for weeks now. We’ve done events outside of the U.C. building on campus, Chick-fil-A, the Apodaca Building; public places with good traffic,” Parks said.
“We haven’t gotten any registrations today but the event is still young. Either way, we still get 10-20 people registering to vote each time we hold an event on campus so things even out,” Parks said.
Local resident Zech Hoppes also commented on the event.
“I wish they had more advertising for this but, despite that, this has more turnout than I had seen for the SCC forum. Either way, it’s really cool to get acquainted with the candidates and learn about what campaign promises what,” Hoppes said.
Only several candidates attended the event including Casey Walawender, David Rogers, Steve Sutton, Rollie James and Anna Ferguson.
Anna Ferguson declined to comment.
Make sure you’re registered to vote in Jackson County before the Oct. 9 if you want to vote by mail or on Election Day, Nov. 3.
Cullowhee will have two early voting locations: the Rec Center and WCU Health and Human Science building, on Savannah road. The HHS location is the new and only Election Day location for Cullowhee.
Register to vote at the State Board of Elections website.
