With Mayor Baldwin’s power fading, her team’s practice of hiding self serving backroom deals behind deceptive spin is losing favor. A better path to reelection for Baldwin’s former voting block is to ask for redemption – and we agree. Of the three remaining Councilors who toed the Baldwin line – Melton, Branch and Forte – Jonathan Melton is the first to begin a redemption pilgrimage, by apologizing for his 2020 vote to sack CACs.* He recently joined forces with Councilors elected in 2022 to reinstate CACs and promised to make them better than before. Apology accepted.
A more difficult path to 2024 reelection redemption still lies ahead for the three. In 2021 Branch, Forte and Melton joined in Baldwin’s unethical scheme to subvert Raleigh voters’ most fundamental right: to choose who and how they elect their leaders. After denying any secret effort was underway to negotiate with the Legislature to give themselves an extra year in office, they did exactly that. There was no public notice, no public debate, and no public vote. Their deceptive justifications couldn’t keep the Governor from publicly rebuking their abuse of power.
Come November, Raleigh voters may be willing to chalk up the vote to sack CACs as a bad rookie error. More telling will be if voters accept candid apologies for subverting our voting rights. If so, voters may be willing to give Branch, Forte or Melton another chance in office.
*Branch voted against sacking the CACs, but kept Baldwin’s plan secret from the public and from a fellow Councilor. Forte was not on Council at the time of this CAC vote.
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