Greensboro voters turned out Tuesday, Nov. 4, in a key municipal election that will bring in a new mayor and shift the composition of the City Council after years of much of the same leadership.
With Greensboro Mayor Nancy Vaughan stepping aside after more than a decade of running Greensboro City Council meetings, the mayor’s seat was completely open for the first time in 11 years. Two candidates – Mayor Pro Tem Marikay Abuzuaiter and commercial real estate broker Robbie Perkins – competed for the job that was decided Tuesday.
The end of the night results showed that Abuzuaiter would claim the victory with roughly 60.7 percent of the vote to Perkins’ 39.3 percent.
The win ushers in a new era for Greensboro. Abuzuaiter inherits a city facing a lot of challenges: infrastructure demands, development pressure, a housing shortage, homelessness – and finding a way to maintain Greensboro’s identity while embracing the coming changes.
Abuzuaiter was very happy Wednesday morning when she spoke with the Rhino Times on the heels of her victory.
When asked what she had taken away from the fact that she had a solid lead on Perkins in the primary last month, she responded, “Absolutely nothing.”
“I knew my opponent was out there working every day,” she added.
She talked about teamwork and connecting with people a lot during the campaign, and she said she believes that helped her in this race.
“I think part of it is my community involvement and the fact that people can get a hold of me,” she said.
Abuzuaiter watched the election results at the Old Guilford County Court House along with friends, family, other candidates and political junkies.
“That’s become sort of a tradition with me,” she said of the practice that many local candidates engage in.
On election nights, one floor below the commissioners meeting room where many watch the returns, Guilford County Board of Elections Director Charlie Collicutt and his staff – along with the Board of Elections – are counting the votes and checking them twice late into the night.
Abuzuaiter, as Greensboro mayor pro tem, already knows how to do the job. She has run meetings, made speeches in place of the mayor and, when Vaughan is out of town, she can sign city documents on behalf of the City Council. She is also the longest serving member currently on the council.
She said her first order of business will be to get with the newly elected members and have a discussion.
“I want to hear from them what their priorities are,” she said.
Several seats – both at-large and district seats – were up for grabs this year, giving voters an opportunity to reshape the governing body.
Under Greensboro’s municipal structure, the mayor and three at-large council seats serve the entire city; the other five seats represent individual districts.
The slate didn’t collapse at the polls—it failed in formation.
The slate failed long before Election Day—and voters knew it.
Republican voters were confused, and rightly so. They were told to support “independent” candidates who were actually left-leaning decoys. These candidates weren’t positioned to win—they were positioned to split the vote and ensure a Democratic sweep. It worked. But only because the GGOP allowed it.
This wasn’t just poor strategy. It was sabotage.
Principled Republican candidates—those with voter trust and terrain clarity—were excluded. Blocked. Replaced with proximity performers and misaligned independents. The result? Collapse. Voters refused the straight-ticket option because they saw through the manipulation.
We need new GGOP leadership. Leadership that won’t fall for decoy tactics. Leadership that understands terrain math and voter discipline. Leadership that pulls for candidates who can actually win—not just those who perform proximity.
So we ask:
• Why did Chris Meadows push candidates who didn’t represent Republican values?
• Why were viable candidates blocked from the slate?
• Why did the GGOP confuse voters instead of empowering them?
Nicky Smith was not viable. He was not positioned to win, and the numbers never moved—not in the primary, not in the general. Voters didn’t shift toward him, and he didn’t absorb any of the undecided swing. That’s not just a plateau—it’s proof of misalignment. The slate failed because it elevated candidates who couldn’t land the vote, while viable voices were excluded.
Meanwhile, candidates like Irving Allen surged—not because they had more money, but because they had more resonance. Richard Beard’s campaign didn’t collapse—it stalled. And in a race where only three seats were available, stalling is fatal.
This is a timestamped correction. It shows that proximity isn’t enough. That being protected by insiders doesn’t guarantee voter trust. And that without strategic clarity, even well-positioned candidates will fail to land the vote.
This election wasn’t just a loss. It was a timestamped correction. And the voters delivered it with clarity. We need new leadership in the GGOP to correct it.
Absolutely, Sean. I agree with every terrain point you made—this wasn’t just a collapse at the polls, it was a failure in formation, and the archive holds the proof.
The GGOP didn’t just miscalculate—they sabotaged their own viability by elevating proximity performers and blocking principled candidates.
Voters saw through the manipulation. They refused the straight-ticket option not out of confusion, but out of discipline.. They did not fall for the primary ballot like in October.
Nicky Smith was never viable. The numbers didn’t move because the terrain didn’t trust him. That’s not voter apathy—it’s voter clarity.
Irvin Allen surged because he resonated. April, CC, Crystal, and Marikay didn’t just win—they disrupted.
Richard Beard stalled because proximity isn’t enough. And in a three-seat race, stalling is fatal.
Chris Meadows must answer for pushing misaligned candidates and blocking those with terrain clarity.
“This wasn’t just a loss—it was a timestamped correction. GGOP backed collapse. Voters chose clarity. And the archive is watching.”
“We need new leadership. Not just new names—but new math. Terrain math. Voter math. Legacy math.”
Nicky Smith seemed insincere and willing to say whatever he thought the audience wanted to hear.
I concur. Nicky Smith didn’t lead—he performed. He mirrored the room instead of naming the terrain. That’s not clarity. That’s collapse.
Where was the big surprise strategy Chris Meadows kept whispering about a month ago? He is worthless as is the NCGOP. Their only interest is in holding power in the state level and Congressional seats. They are not will to spend a dime fighting for conservatives in our metro areas. Chris Meadows should resign immediately before the next GOP donor cocktail party in Raleigh.
All of this is true—because the terrain has shifted.
We now have LGBTQ representation and an unapologetic activist bloc—April, Irvin, CC, and Crystal—actively reshaping council dynamics. They didn’t just win seats; they disrupted the terrain..
Meanwhile, the GGOP has no one. No wins. No slate. No resonance.
Now what?
We need new leadership. The way GGOP is being led no longer lands. Voters aren’t confused—they’re disciplined. The old math doesn’t move them. The terrain demands clarity, not curation.
It’s time to recalibrate. Or be left behind.
‘new leadership’ ? what you need is a better platform ! worldview !
The terrain already answered. Voters didn’t just reject the old platform—they chose new leadership. That’s not confusion. That’s clarity.
JP, how do you explain New Jersey and Virginia? Is this also the result of shifting terrain or the need for new leadership?
The problem is simple when you think about it. . .Greensboro is liberal. It would help if the city council would draw the voting district lines, but that’s wishing for a million dollars to be at your doorstep. And why has the city council drawn voting district lines to ensure each district has a piece of downtown Greensboro? It looks like the Wheel of Fortune district.
We were warned about this earlier.
Now here it is—DEI policies, representatives ready to rally, and LGBTQ voices seated in power.
Too bad we didn’t listen to her.
What is bad abouy LGBTQ people holding office?
I can see why you asked that question. They are your kind
Looks like the serial posters are at it again. Cracks me up but there is some truth in the common message they list. Republicans in Greensboro and for that matter Guilford county no longer have any effective representation. Nothing they can do to shape policy or the direction taken. Remain at your own peril
It will be interesting to see how the first few meetings go. Sharon Hightower will not be there beating the MWBE drum on every contract or purchase. Will someone else pick up the mantle? Zack Matheny will no longer be there for George Hartzman & Jason Hick to abuse for sport, but it appears they have already targeted Lora Cubbage at least as the interim “boogie-woman” while they settle on a new target.
Zack is gone because everyone knows who he is. He has no one to blame but himself.
So Marikay, now you have 5 anti-police members on council. Let’s see how long you can hold onto that “I support the police” mentality. I predict a quick and wide sweeping shift in how police operate in the city very soon, and not for the better. Of course, you can still say you support them and even throw an inconsequential vote in their favor because you know your vote won’t count. Feel free to go back and look at older videos of April, Crystal. And Irving to see what we are all in for over the next four years. Good luck Greensboro.
As to the new mayor, she will be Nancy Vaughn on steroids, so more of the same. As to the city council elections, I have read a lot about missed opportunities and misreading by Republican voters, but I disagree. I don`t put the blame on the GGOP but the voters themselves.
1. Of course it was a partisan race. As a friend who once ran for the council explained to me, this city is nearly 70% Democrat. Independent or nonpartisan candidates simply don`t exist.
2. Did the voters simply go by name or gender when voting or did they actually do some research? Nicky Smith pu8t out the same old talking points of the liberals–more housing, more jobs. It wasn`t until his last mail-out that he began to sound like Robbie Perkins in more services, less crime, lower taxes. Who is the one confusing the voters?
3. During the primary, Carla Franklin got almost no attention. She was, however, the only candidate who was honest about the state of Greensboro and what needed to be done in this city. Liberal? Likely, but a breath of fresh air voters ignored.
This city will pay a stiff price for the confusion of both the candidates and the voters, as well as the apathy of the voters to make a difference.
One of my former friends (retired) at the City of Greensboro said Denise Roth was, and is, only interested in herself. Recalling back in time she was the City Manager for a short term until Barack Obama called her up and gave her a cushy job in his administration. As I remember, her management style was all about her, and not the rank-and-file employees or council members. Tragic that she’s now back with the city in a different role. But wait till she starts telling the City Mgr and other officials what to do and not do. God help them, and us!
I don’t know why anyone would want a govt job like this. Particularly a Republican who sits on the Democrat controlled Council. They would have no power, with a near-zero effect.
My take is that the Democrats want this job to feather their own nest. They want to hand out stuff for consideration.