District 5 Greensboro City Councilmember Tammi Thurm, on Monday, Feb. 15, announced that she is running for reelection.

Thurm is currently serving her first term on the City Council after defeating former District 5 City Councilmember Tony Wilkins to win the seat in 2017.  Wilkins was originally appointed to represent District 5 in 2012, when District 5 Councilmember Trudy Wade was elected to the state Senate.  Wilkins won elections in 2013 and 2015.  Incumbent councilmembers usually win reelection, particularly if they have been in office more than one term.  For Thurm to knock off a two-and-a-half-term incumbent was quite a feat.  Her longtime community involvement in numerous organizations was a big plus.

The press release announcing Thurm’s run for a second term states, “After being elected to serve the people of District 5 in 2017, Thurm focused her work on supporting safe and affordable housing, working with neighbors, local businesses, and developers to promote smart growth in Greensboro, and working with residents through prompt constituent services.”

Thurm did experience some frustrations in her first term.  She is a big proponent of having the police use written forms before performing a consent search of a vehicle, individual or home.  A consent search is when a police officer doesn’t have a warrant or probable cause but requests consent to search.  Thurm frequently requested the City Council hold a work session to discuss requiring that police get a form signed before conducting such a search, to ensure that the person whose property is being searched understands the right to refusal and freely gives consent.

It took Thurm about six months to get a work session scheduled on consent forms.  Eventually the work session was held, but the City Council voted down the motion to require that written consent forms be signed before a search.

In the press release Thurm states, “When I look at all we’ve accomplished these last three years, combined with the unique challenges that will face us the next four, I am more motivated than ever to serve the people of the 5th District so we can finish what we started.”