Durham’s early votes have been tallied. Who’s taken the lead in local races?

The Durham County Board of Commissioners will get three new members this fall, including two former education leaders in a year when school issues have roiled the community.

As of 11 p.m., final but unofficial results for all 59 precincts showed these presumptive winners:

Incumbent Brenda Howerton finished with 19,881 votes, or 9.09%. Elections Director Derek Bowens said Wednesday that was not close enough to allow a recount, according to a multi-seat provision in state elections law.

Incumbent Nimasheena Burns, the board’s current vice-chair, placed seventh, finishing with 17,066 votes, or 7.8%.

Howerton is a former board chair who has served four terms. Burns has served a single term.

Rounding out the field were Jovonia Lewis, with 16,039 votes (7.33%), Frederick A. Davis with 15,362 votes (7.02%), Renee Jamison Vaughan with 5,056 votes (2.31%) and Daryl Payton with 2,328 votes (1.06%).

Laura Klein and Andrew Witkins vote with their children, Prince, 6, and Otis, 8, at White Rock Baptist Church on Tuesday, March 5, 2024, in Durham, N.C.

Public school issues have been the top concern locally after withdrawn raises and budgeting mistakes led to strikes and school closings. The debacle likely drew many voters out to cast ballots for county commissioners, who help fund Durham Public Schools.

“I’m about to cry. … I never would have expected this,” Burton said. “I just wish my mother was alive to see this. That little girl that she raised on the south side of Chicago never would have imagined she would be here today.”

Allam said the school salary issues dominated conversations with voters and that she tried to convey how important it is to be good stewards of tax dollars instead of rushing to throw money at the problem. County commissioners and school board members will begin discussing next year’s budget later this month.

“Just looking at the people who I’ll be working with over the next four years, I’m really excited,” Allam said. “It’s going to be good for our public schools.”

Affordable housing and sustainable growth were also on voters’ minds, according to Valentine. The director of N.C. Central University’s Veterans Law Clinic said he was grateful for a broad base of support.

“As a social worker, as an attorney, as a military person, I think all those experiences spoke to the electorate,” Valentine said. “I’m thankful for people placing their trust in me.”

Laura Klein puts a sticker on Prince Witkins, 6, after voting at White Rock Baptist Church in Durham, N.C. on Tuesday, March 5, 2024.

Five seats were up for grabs, and all 11 who ran are Democrats. The winners of Tuesday’s primary will take their seats Dec. 2, after the general election.

Turnout in Durham was just under 27%, according to the Board of Elections. That’s below the 2020 primary, which had nearly 40% turnout.

Because there were five seats open, candidates only had to win 6% of the vote to avoid triggering a second primary, not the 30% required in other races.

School board race

Meanwhile, there was only one seat on the Board of Education with a competitive primary: the at-large seat being vacated by Alexandra Valladares.

Joy Harrell beat Atrayus Goode in that race. She won all the major endorsements and had 48,682 votes or 88.33% of the total.

Harrell said she hopes to restore trust in the school board.

“Being the only contested candidate, for me running was never about running against anyone. I’m running for our youth, our community, our public schools,” she said. “Right now is a time when we really need to restore faith in what public education is supposed to be,” she said.

Joy Harrell was elected to an at-large seat on the Durham Public Schools Board of Education in 2024.

By default, three other seats will be filled by:

School board members will be sworn in during the first meeting in July.

Editor’s note: An initial online version of this story stated the incorrect percentage that candidates needed to avoid a runoff. It is 30% divided by five (open seats), or 6%.