WakeLP cannot formally endorse non-Libertarian candidates, but we work across all aisles to deliver the very best results we can for the residents of Wake County. To that end, we look forward to working with good people in all our municipalities, including folks such as:

Apex Town Council Andre Powell (Independent)

Mr. Powell possesses an insightful strategic perspective on town planning and financing and appears ready and willing to shake things up when the status quo point of view is too shortsighted (whether or not he wins this election). A strong supporter of private property rights, he has a nuanced and realistic view of the criminal justice system and wants policing policy to focus on violent and property crime rather than victimless “crimes.” 

Holly Springs Town Council Sarah Larson (Democrat)

Ms. Larson combines a strong stance in support of individual rights with a persuasive plan to help make Holly Springs an even more thriving community. She aims to improve walkability downtown, which will help local businesses, and she would focus policing on crimes against persons and property—not on victimless “crimes”—and increase community involvement. She aims to provide full transparency between the council and the residents of Holly Springs.

Wake Forest Mayor Ben Clapsaddle (Democrat)

Mr. Clapsaddle is an enthusiastic and articulate advocate for Wake Forest and his mantra is inclusiveness, exemplified by his refusal (as a town commissioner) to approve the creation of a social district until the ordinance was amended to address the concerns of small business owners and a mechanism for tracking performance. Refreshingly (for a Democrat) fiscally responsible and advocates for more home rule for localities.

Wake Forest Board of Commissioners Nick Sliwinski (Republican)

Mr. Sliwinski is another proponent of home rule for municipalities. He is very process oriented, and anti-partisan to the point where although he is a Republican, he’s running without the endorsement of WakeGOP this year (they did endorse him in 2023). Fiscally conservative, favors more density but wants to preserve the character of downtown Wake Forest. Wants police focused on violent crime and property crime, but trained to deal with mental health issues. Also: the only Forward Party-aligned candidate in Wake County in 2025.

Wendell Board of Commissioners Wes Jones (Republican)

Mr. Jones is possibly the most libertarian candidate in the 2025 field—“government should be like a small bodybuilder: things it does it should do well, but it should not do much”—and almost certainly the best-connected non-incumbent: formerly engaged in business and construction litigation and currently counsel to the NC House. He believes that municipal governments in NC too often arbitrarily object to development proposals that are consistent with their own plans and all legal requirements. If elected, his connections could help Wendell promote their NCGA wish list (presuming he skirts conflicts of interest).

Zebulon Board of Commissioners Jesse Brown (Republican)

Speaking of “municipal governments in NC too often arbitrarily object[ing] to development proposals that are consistent with their own plans and all legal requirements,” Zebulon could be a poster child. And Mr. Brown—whose family-owned construction company nearly died in the wake of the 2008 housing market meltdown and who’s also served as a police officer—has a keen appreciation of the consequent problems. He aims to get government out of the way of small business owners and developers who could enliven Zebulon’s dilapidated downtown and boost the supply of housing. One caveat: he’s a big fan of Flock cameras, based on a few crimes they’ve helped solve.

There were an all-time record 324,543 votes for Libertarian candidates in Wake County in 2024…but we still did not get anyone elected. (It’s hard for even Republicans to get elected in Wake…17 of our 19 NCGA seats are held by Democrats.) So while it’s important for us to field candidates who raise libertarian issues during the election campaign, when it comes to actually effecting policy, we spend a lot of time and energy working with Democratic and Republican officeholders—and on the county and municipal level, independents.

80 candidates are on the ballot in Wake County municipalities in 2025, and we contacted all of them to help us ascertain their relative appreciation of the libertarian perspective. Based on preliminary feedback, we ended up conducting in-depth interviews with 20 candidates. The purpose was twofold: for them to inform us about their campaigns and for us to brief them on some of our priorities re: municipal governance.

All the interviewed candidates were asked about municipal finances, growth priorities, policing policies, and the municipal/county relationship with state government (given that we live in a Dillon Rule state). And we briefed them all on our perspectives on private property/zoning, small business deregulation, criminal justice policy, and electoral reform as they relate to municipal governance…for example, implementing instant runoff voting (a/k/a ranked choice voting) for local elections, which would remove the possibility of a “winner” being elected with a minority of votes cast and, statewide, would save municipalities and counties millions of dollars each cycle by eliminating the need to conduct/pay for separate runoffs.

All-in-all, our conversations with the candidates were very productive. Reaching consensus on the top six was not easy; there were several close calls. Whomever wins in November, we look forward to working with all these folks.