Vote for Belonging Today
North Carolina’s primaries will decide who writes the rules that shape our neighborhoods.
Children assume that everyone belongs. Adults turn belonging into a policy debate.
I am raising children in Raleigh, and as I head into this primary Election Day, I keep thinking about the juxtaposition between parenting and politics.
Each morning I read about international conflict before making breakfast and packing snacks. I answer emails about zoning text while I handle school pickup. I review candidate questionnaires after bedtime.
This is how a lot of us are living right now. Big headlines. Small routines. Same day.
The national climate feels unstable. My kids have noticed too. Sometimes they ask why their classmates are afraid to come to school. Children notice. Sometimes they ask why I go speak at City Council in favor of building apartments. They notice that some adults don’t want apartments. But to kids, an apartment just means more friends on the playground. More bikes on the sidewalk. More birthday parties.
Our children assume that belonging is normal.
As adults, we turn belonging into a debate.
This debate shows up in zoning text, parking mandates, rezoning hearings. It shows up in school board meetings. In each comprehensive plan that expands housing choices or quietly narrows them.
This debate has consequences.
In Chapel Hill, leaders are considering school closures as enrollment declines after years of limited housing growth. When fewer families can afford to live in a community, classrooms empty.
In Durham, the UDO process has been stalled because of efforts to include downzoning measures, even as state law limits that authority. When we restrict housing choices, we are deciding who gets to stay and who never gets the chance to arrive.
The question of who belongs does not stay in living rooms or on playgrounds. It gets written into policy. This debate sits at the heart of our local elections.
Today is primary Election Day.
A day to decide who writes the rules. If we believe that local elections codify belonging, then primaries are where that power is first exercised.
Reminder: This year is the first time that Raleigh City Council will have a primary.
There are yard signs everywhere. People are paying attention. Early voting numbers have been strong. There is energy in the air. But March still feels early. It doesn’t carry the built-in urgency of November.
It’s easy to assume that the “real” election comes later. But in many local races, the primary effectively determines who will hold office. Primaries set direction long before November does. They decide which ideas move forward and which quietly disappear.
This is particularly true for registered voters who are not affiliated with either party; these unaffiliated voters outnumber registered Democrats and Republicans in North Carolina. If you are unaffiliated, you are not sidelined. You choose which ballot to pull. You influence which candidates move forward to November. You help shape what each party stands for locally. That is leverage.
Particularly on Election Day, we must remember that housing policy is not owned by one party. Pro-housing leadership exists across the political spectrum, but it doesn’t advance by accident.
Housing policy only progresses when voters elevate candidates who understand that welcoming new neighbors strengthens our cities. Pro-housing politics is about neighborhoods. It’s about whether they grow, stagnate, exclude, or welcome. Political parties may list every candidate under the same banner. That does not tell you how they’ll vote on housing. Labels are not land use policy. So, if housing matters to you, look beyond the labels.
That’s why we created our housing report cards.
We hope you’ll use them to understand who supports expanding housing choices and who does not.
If you’re reading this, you likely already have a plan to vote.
Today, do one more thing.
Send the housing report cards to one person who hasn’t voted yet.
Text a neighbor.
Forward this email.
Ask them who they believe should define belonging in this city.
Because that’s what today is about. Who defines belonging. Who decides whether there is room for new neighbors.
Many of us are voting while juggling childcare and other responsibilities. Many of us are thinking about the kind of city our children will inherit. Not out of panic, but out of stewardship.
Good housing policy is at the core of that stewardship. So, think about the types of policies and candidates our children would understand. Because children assume that belonging is normal. Let’s make sure our policies do too.
Vote today!
The polls are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. EST on Election Day.
Jenn Truman is a young designer, leader, and advocate based in Raleigh, she is embedded in the local community through both her professional and volunteer work. Jenn is a regular contributor to and Founder of CITYBUILDER.