Editors note: This primary election guide was originally published in April. On May 9th, AVLtoday updated to reflect the winners of the 2018 Buncombe County primary elections.

Results from Tuesday’s Buncombe County primary election are in.



Candidates that will advance to November’s general election:

Note: Priorities listed come from each candidate’s stated platform on his or her website.

US House of Representatives District 10 – Republican

Patrick McHenry : (Incumbent) – Currently serving seventh term in Congress; Chief Deputy Whip ; priorities include drilling + conservation, and alternative sources for energy, establishment of Association Healthcare Plans, rebuilding the economy of WNC. (60.85% of the vote)

US House of Representatives District 11 – Democrat + Republican

Philip G. Price (D) – Nebo resident + small business owner; priorities include healthcare, environment, women’s issues, immigration, promotion of arts + culture, criminal justice reform. (36.32% of the vote)

Mark Meadows (R): incumbent – in his third term in Congress after 27 years as a small business owner; priorities include ending dependence on foreign energy, modernization of the military, state- and locally-run education, removing regulations on businesses. (86.24% of the vote)

NC House of Representatives District 115 – Republican

Amy Evans – Fiscal + social conservative, supports women in business, closed borders, and the 2nd amendment in its entirety (51.95% of the vote)

District Attorney District 40 – Democrat

Todd M. Williams (incumbent) – D.A. since 2015; experience as a Capital and Public Defender and in juvenile and drug treatment court. (53.26% of the vote)

Buncombe County Board of Commissioners District 2 – Democrat

Amanda Edwards – executive director of the A-B Tech Foundation with nonprofit experience; priorities include curbing over-development, funding emergency services, addressing the opioid epidemic, expanding diversity and equity in services and workforce + more. (39.93% of the vote)

Buncombe County Board of Commissioners District 3 – Democrat

Donna Ensley – Nonprofit experience, former chief development officer of MANNA Food Bank; priorities include living wage, environmental protections, educational opportunity, infrastructure improvements + more. (61.37% of the vote)

Buncombe County Sheriff (Countywide) – Democrat

Quentin Miller – Current sergeant in the Asheville Police Department; in favor of de-escalation training + deputy support. (53.93% of the vote)

Originally published article –

Do you know who you’re voting for on Tuesday, May 8? Are you planning to vote? Did you know there was an election?

May 8 is primary election day for Buncombe County, and the deadline to register to vote in the primary race is next Friday (April 13). The general election voting day is November 6. There will be 80 polling places throughout the county (including spots in Black Mountain, Fairview, Alexander + Barnardsville) in this election. And remember, if you want a say on who is on that ballot in November, you have to show up on April 13th.

And, a lot is at stake in local elections. But while turnout for the 2016 presidential election in North Carolina was 68.98%, estimates of voter turnout in municipal elections put it at between 10–15%.

That means that 85–90% of you didn’t vote for local officials, who will make decisions in the county that could directly affect you. And turnout for primary elections is even lower (about 4% in last year’s county election). You can’t complain if you didn’t vote. So hop to it, will ya?

Need to register to vote? Print, complete + sign this form and either mail it to “Election Services, PO Box 7468, Asheville, NC 28802-7468” or drop it off at the Board of Elections (77 McDowell St.), a public library, DMV, or government social services office.

If you miss the deadline to register, you can still register when you vote if you participate in early voting. Early voting for the 2018 primaries in Buncombe County begins April 19. If you choose this option, you’ll have to bring some required identifying materials with you–more information here. (To vote in a primary, you don’t need to be registered with a party affiliation, but if you are, you must vote with that party).

Already registered, but want to find out which precinct you’re in + see your sample ballot? Click here. And finally, don’t know if you’re registered at all? Check it here.

Now, for the nitty gritty, including who + what you can vote for come May.

US House of Representatives District 10 – Republican

Jeff Gregory – 30+ years of Federal Government services; priorities include lowering unemployment, surcharges on foreign goods, deportation of illegal immigrants, protecting the 2nd Amendment, the FairTax position + more

Patrick McHenry : (Incumbent) – Currently serving seventh term in Congress; Chief Deputy Whip ; priorities include drilling + conservation, and alternative sources for energy, establishment of Association Healthcare Plans, rebuilding the economy of WNC + more

Ira Roberts – Veteran (Army + National Guard); priorities including increasing security at schools, border security, modernization or cutting of government programs + more

Albert Lee Wiley, Jr. – Veteran (Navy) and former specialist/responder to radiation incidents; priorities include Christian values in governance, job growth, national security + more

Seth Blankenship – Former Chief of Staff at the D. James Kennedy Center for Christian Statesmanship; priorities include full protection of the 2nd Amendment, privatization of healthcare choice, religious liberty, anti-abortion policies + more

Gina Collias – Founder of Facebook group Rational Republicans , priorities include healthcare reform, reform of the 2017 Tax Law, common sense gun reform, renewable energy development + more

US House of Representatives District 11 – Democrat + Republican

Philip G. Price (D) – Nebo resident + small business owner; priorities include healthcare, environment, women’s issues, immigration, promotion of arts + culture, criminal justice reform + more

Steve Woodsmall (D) – Veteran (Air Force); PhD in Organization + Management; priorities include immigration, healthcare, job creation, reproductive rights, gun regulation + more

D. Scott Donaldson (D) – Urological surgeon (MD/PhD) in Hendersonville; involvement in hospital + community leadership; priorities include affordable healthcare, gun safety, campaign finance reform + more

Mark Meadows (R): incumbent – in his third term in Congress after 27 years as a small business owner; priorities include ending dependence on foreign energy, modernization of the military, state- and locally-run education, removing regulations on businesses + more

Chuck Archerd (R) : Biltmore Park resident, has stated he hopes to lose but plans to run in case Meadows takes a position in the Trump administration

NC House of Representatives District 115 – Republican

Nathan West – 4 years experience as Communications Director for the Buncombe County GOP, focus on next generation of Republican leaders

Amy Evans – Fiscal + social conservative, supports women in business, closed borders, and the 2nd amendment in its entirety

District Attorney District 40 – Democrat

Ben Scales – Lawyer, activist + musician involved in the marijuana legalization movement + entertainment law

Todd M. Williams (incumbent) – D.A. since 2015; experience as a Capital and Public Defender and in juvenile and drug treatment court

Buncombe County Board of Commissioners District 2 – Democrat

Patrick Fitzsimmons – Executive director of Mountain BiZWorks, member of Weaverville Town Council; priorities include job creation, oversight of land + financial resources, modernization of zoning ordinances + more

Dereck Lindsey – EMT at Regional Transport Service at Mission Health Systems; priorities include responsible County growth, addressing the opioid epidemic, affordable housing, preserving the culture of Buncombe county + more

Nancy Nehls Nelson – former project manager at AT&T Bell Labs; priorities include affordable and accessible healthcare, funding education, environmental protections + more

Amanda Edwards – executive director of the A-B Tech Foundation with nonprofit experience; priorities include curbing over-development, funding emergency services, addressing the opioid epidemic, expanding diversity and equity in services and workforce + more

Buncombe County Board of Commissioners District 3 – Democrat

Catori Swann – Small business owner, involved in local theatre; priorities include education and afterschool resources support, adapting county infrastructure to meet rate of growth, addressing cost of living + more

Taylon Breeden – Grassroots campaign experience, founder of Goat Yoga Asheville; priorities include affordable housing, environmental protections, broadband infrastructure, addressing the opioid epidemic + more

Donna Ensley – Nonprofit experience, former chief development officer of MANNA Food Bank; priorities include living wage, environmental protections, educational opportunity, infrastructure improvements + more

Buncombe County Sheriff (Countywide) – Democrat

R. Daryl Fisher – 30+ years community policing experience in WNC; focus on investigating all reported crimes, particularly violence + sexual assault and with controlled substances; discretion around minor offenses

Rondell Lance – 26 ½ years experience in the Asheville Police Department; mission includes state-of-the-art training for law enforcement and establishing close working relationships with residents of the county and adjacent law enforcement agencies

Quentin Miller – Current sergeant in the Asheville Police Department; in favor of de-escalation training + deputy support

Randy Smart – 24-year resident of Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office and Captain over Criminal Investigations Division; officially endorsed by current Sheriff Duncan

Chris Winslow – Law enforcement officer + volunteer firefighter; platform includes addressing communication between the Sheriff’s Office and citizens, the drugs/breaking & entering/larceny, and animal abuse + neglect

Just in case you got down here and forgot what those resources from the intro were, we got you.

Need to register to vote? Print, complete + sign this form and either mail it to “Election Services, PO Box 7468, Asheville, NC 28802-7468” or drop it off at the Board of Elections (77 McDowell St.), a public library, DMV, or government social services office.

Already registered, but want to find out which precinct you’re in + see your sample ballot? Click here. And finally, don’t know if you’re registered at all? Check it here.