New faces line-up for aldermen
Shaun Adams
The race for Robbinsville mayor just went from solo to opposed.
Incumbent Steve Hooper was the first Graham County candidate to file for the 2021 municipal election, submitting his paperwork July 6.
However, Robbinsville Town Alderman Shaun Adams opted to run against Hooper, filing for the ballot July 15.
In an email sent to The Graham Star on Monday, Adams provided an explanation behind running against Hooper, with whom he has clashed on several occasions during his stint on the board of aldermen.
“There are several improvements I wanted to make and many ways that the town can save money, but my hands have been tied since day one, as they have prevented me from doing my job and excluded me from many things, and did stuff behind my back,” Adams wrote. “North Carolina law gives the board of aldermen the governing authority of the town. Still, the other two board members allowed the mayor to do whatever he wanted.
“So as mayor, I should be able to have more power in the day-to-day business of the town, which the other board members and the mayor have prevented me from doing this term. Thousands of dollars of public money are misspent and the people of this town suffer because of it. I have spent hundreds of hours researching ways that things can be done more efficiently, but every time I have brought up any improvements, they have been against it. But with all the resistance I have faced, I still want to help the people of this town and it can be done, if have the right people to work with.”
Adams has repeatedly stated his displeasure with Robbinsville providing Hooper a town vehicle at meetings. The contention between the two reached a head on June 17, 2020, when Adams entered the Graham County Recycling Center and asked Hooper if he was at the center on town business.
A verbal exchange followed, and soon after Hooper filed a no-contact order against Adams. The disagreements led to Adams not attending town meetings between March 4, 2020, and June 2, 2021.
As alluded to in his email, Adams has also clashed with Aldermen Debbie Beasley and Brian “Taco” Johnson over public records. He asserts that auditors – and aldermen – approved Adams to spearhead a board investigation into a widely-discussed issue with untaxed, fringe benefits. Since then, Adams says he has continually been denied access to more than 100 missing credit card statements and the amount of gift cards that were given out.
Other races
Beasley and Johnson approved a motion to put alcohol sales on the November ballot at the July 1, 2020, town meeting. The sale of malt beverages and unfortified wine within the town limits would effectively remove Graham County’s status as the only remaining dry county in the state, which began in 1948.
Beasley and Johnson have filed for re-election as Robbinsville town aldermen. They will face opposition from Jacky Ayers, Kenneth Hyde, Nicki Moody and Blake Orr, all of whom have also filed for the three-seat council.
With the Town of Fontana Dam looking to reduce its council’s size, only three candidates filed for the county’s smallest municipality, all incumbents: Mayor Rob Hardy and council members Tiffany Duke and Jon Hodgson. Fontana’s ballot will also include the opportunity to vote on increasing the number of years between its election, from two years to four.
Lake Santeetlah’s ballot also features an all-incumbent lineup for re-election: Mayor Jim Hager and council members Roger Carlton, Kevin Haag, Keith Predmore and Diana Simon.
One-stop (early) voting will begin Thursday, Oct. 14, and close Saturday, Oct. 30. A location has not been determined, but voting will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. – save for the final day, when voting is open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The 2021 general election will be held Tuesday, Nov. 2.