Asheville, Buncombe Election Day voter guide: Who is on the ballot Nov. 5?

About the upcoming election

Every vote counts in this upcoming election on Nov. 5. Voters in Asheville and Buncombe County will have their chance to cast ballots on candidates and issues. The general election will have races for mayor, City Council Asheville, Buncombe County Board of Commissioners, Board of Education and several local referendums. Early voting started Sept. 14 and will conclude on Nov. 3, while Election Day will be on Nov. 5.

In Asheville, the mayoral race is between incumbent Esther Manheimer and challenger Kim Roney. Manheimer was previously elected mayor and has been serving in the role since 2017. Roney is a former Buncombe County Commissioner and Asheville City Council member.

For Asheville City Council, there are seven candidates running for the four open seats: incumbent Keith Young, Sheneika Smith, Zack Matheny, Kimone Green, Martin Mosby, Rich Lee and Sandra Kilgore.

The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners race currently has five candidates vying for three seats: incumbents Ellen Frost and Robert Pressley, as well as newcomers Al Whitesides, Daryl Brown and Amanda Edwards.

There are four candidates vying for the three seats on the Asheville Board of Education: incumbent James Carter Jr., and challengers Betsy Vandevender, Jesse Warren and David Thompson.

Voters will also see three referendums on the ballot. The first is a city of Asheville referendum to allow the sale of mixed beverages by certain businesses on Sundays. The second is a countywide referendum to approve up to $30 million in bonds to improve water and sewer infrastructure. The third is a countywide referendum to approve up to $75 million in bonds to construct a new jail.

More information

For an in-depth look into the candidates and their platforms, readers should visit the Citizen-Times candidate profiles at tinyurl.com/4s7h86jk.

For more information about the election or for sample ballots, go to the Buncombe County Board of Elections website at www.buncombecounty.org/vote.