Nov. 17, 2015. This afternoon, the ten Republican members of North Carolina’s U.S. House of Representatives delegation released the following statement in response to Friday’s terrorist attacks in Paris and Governor Pat McCrory’s request that the Obama Administration cease sending Syrian refugees to North Carolina.

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Nov. 4, 2015. Current Mayor Pro-Tem Rennie Brantz will be the new mayor, according to unofficial results in the 2015 municipal elections held on Tuesday, and Councilwomen Loretta Clawson and Lynne Mason retained their seats. Brantz, who has served on the Boone Town Council for about 10 years and is a professor of history at Appalachian State University, thumped his conservative opponent, Ryan Hollingsworth. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Nov. 4, 2015. Beer and wine are here to stay in Newland restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores and other establishments. Although the sale of beer and wine was initially approved in the 2009 election, citizen Steve Nelson persuaded the Newland Town Council to place an alcohol referendum on the ballot in the hopes that voters would ban the sale of wine and beer. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Nov. 4, 2015. The village people spoke, and J.B. Lawrence will soon begin his 10th term as the mayor of Blowing Rock. According to the unofficial elections results, Lawrence won 62 percent of the vote with 277 votes, while challenger Charlie Sellers, owner of The Blowing Rock attraction and a member of the Robbins family, garnered 38 percent of the vote. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Nov, 3, 2015. The unofficial results for the 2015 municipal elections in Watauga and Avery counties are in.

Losing Incumbents: Cindy Keller (Beech Mountain Town Council); Dan Phillips (Blowing Rock Town Council); Dale Henson (Crossnore Alderman); Susie Potter (Newland Town Council)

Newland’s referendum on the sale of alcohol: 72 percent of voters approved the sale of wine and beer in Newland town limits. This compares to 54 percent that favored alcohol sales when it first appeared on the ballot in 2006. For more background on this controversial issue, click here. 

Write-in Candidates Win in Crossnore and Newland: Dan Vance, a write-in candidate, came in third in the Crossnore Alderman race, which featured 3 seats. Vance received 24 votes, just squeaking by incumbent Dale Henson’s 23 votes. Dave Calvert, a write-in candidate in Newland, also came in third in the Newland Town Council race, which also featured 3 seats. Calvert received 126 votes, more than 40 more than the fourth-place votegetter.

Incumbent Mayors Win Big: Incumbent mayors across Avery and Watauga counties won by big margins on Tuesday, according to unofficial results. JB Lawrence in Blowing Rock, Brenda Lyerly in Banner Elk and current Boone Mayor Pro-Tem Rennie Brantz were among the victorious. COMPILED BY JESSE WOOD / Read more…

Nov. 3, 2015. Boone has nearly 17,000 registered voters (those active and in-active for last two general elections). During early voting, 544 Boone citizens voted for the municipal elections. During the first hour of early voting, only a handful made it to the polls between 6:30 and 7:30 a.m. “It’s been pretty quiet,” Watauga County Elections Director Matthew Snyder said earlier this morning. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Nov. 2, 2015. Instead of framing the response and sending all of the candidates a list of questions, High Country Press let the candidates set the tone by asking for a statement on whatever the candidates wanted voters to know. Here are their responses. Compiled by Jesse Wood / Read more…

Nov. 2, 2015. In Watauga County and Avery County, residents of Newland and Boone beat folks from other municipalities to the polls during early voting, which ended on Saturday afternoon. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Nov. 2, 2015. Instead of framing the response and sending all of the candidates a list of questions, High Country Press let the candidates set the tone by asking for a statement on whatever the candidates wanted voters to know. Here are their responses. Compiled by Jesse Wood / Read more…

Nov. 2, 2015. Outgoing Boone Town Councilman Quint David, who decided not to run for re-election this cycle, said he was concerned about the lack of questions, and subsequently discussions, regarding sustainability at recent candidate forums. So he took the matter into his own hands and asked several questions of mayoral and council candidates in the Boone municipal election. Posted by Jesse Wood
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Oct. 30, 2015. Only several more hours of early voting in the municipal elections exists through 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 31. So far – as of Friday at around lunchtime – more than 600 people have voted early in Avery and Watauga counties. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 28, 2015. Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., today released the following statement regarding her vote against the federal budget agreement that would suspend the debt ceiling through March 2017: “Every time the federal government approaches its debt limit, like clockwork, liberal politicians – from the White House down – begin threatening ‘default’ unless the government is able to continue with its spending binge. Such gamesmanship is a disservice to everyone. / Read more…

Oct. 28 2015. With a few more days of early voting left in the 2015 municipal elections, nearly 400 people have voted in Watauga and Avery counties as of early Wednesday, according to staff at the Avery and Watauga County Board of Elections. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 21, 2015. Nearly 70 people have voted through 4 p.m. on the first day of early voting in the 2015 municipal elections, according to Watauga County Board of Elections Director Matt Snyder. “It’s not a huge number, but we’re getting there,” Snyder said. Snyder said that most of the voters are from Boone with a handful from Blowing Rock and a couple from Beech Mountain. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 21, 2015. Early voting for the 2015 municipal elections begins on Thursday at 8 a.m. While Election Day takes place on Tuesday, Nov. 3, registered voters may cast their ballots through Saturday, Oct. 31. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 21, 2015. All of the candidates in 2015 municipal elections for the Town of Boone pitched their candidacy and spoke on some of the issues facing the town on Monday evening. The Boone Chamber of Commerce sponsored the forum, which included questions related to the town’s water-intake project, relations between the town and Watauga County, affordable housing and more. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 19, 2015. Just a few days away, early voting begins on Thursday, Oct. 22. All four municipalities in Watauga County – Beech Mountain, Seven Devils, Blowing Rock and Boone – feature contested races. Boone and Blowing Rock both feature candidate forums on Monday, Oct. 19. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 19, 2015. The Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce hosts a “Candidates’ Forum” on Monday, Oct. 19, at 5:30 p.m. in the Blowing Rock Elementary School auditorium. According to an announcement by the chamber, this forum is being dubbed a “community question-and-answer session” with all of the candidates. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 19, 2015. The Boone Area Chamber is encouraging voter participation by hosting a “Meet the Candidates” forum on Monday, Oct. 19, beginning at 5:30 p.m, to hear from Boone Town Council and Boone mayoral candidates. The forum takes place in the Boone Town Council Chambers on Blowing Rock Road. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 15, 2015. Inside are the sample ballots for all the municipalities in Avery County for the 2015 elections. Unlike the other municipalities which only feature candidates on the ballot, Newland is unique this election cycle because of the referendum on beer and wine wine sales, a controversial topic that has divided Christians. Newland residents barely approved the sell of beer and wine in restaurants and stores in 2009. Now it’s back on the ballot. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 14, 2015. If you live in Blowing Rock, Beech Mountain or Seven Devils, you might have to vote in a different location for the 2015 municipal elections than you have voted at during past elections. Beginning this election season, the N.C. State Board of Elections (SBOE) will only allow registered voters to vote in the county of residence. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 7, 2015. The deadline to register to vote for the 2015 municipal elections throughout North Carolina is Friday, Oct. 9. Early voting starts Thursday, Oct. 22. Election Day is Nov. 3. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 7, 2015. The House of Representatives today passed a resolution introduced by Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., that creates a special House panel to investigate abortion practices at providers such as Planned Parenthood and the sale of unborn children’s tissue. / Read more…

Oct. 5, 2015. The Blowing Rock Civic Association has released video of the group’s candidate forum for the 2015 municipal elections that was held last week at the American Legion Building in downtown Blowing Rock. All of the candidates – incumbent Mayor J.B. Lawrence, mayoral challenger Charlie Sellers, owner of The Blowing Rock attraction, incumbent Councilmen Dan Phillips and Al Yount and challenger and former Councilman Jim Steele – attended. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Oct. 2, 2015. Check out the current party affiliation and voter demographic statistics for the 6.38 million registered voters in North Carolina below; the figures and graphics were released by the State Board of Elections and are current as of Sept. 22, which was National Voter Registration Day. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Sept. 14, 2015. In addition to the Blowing Rock Civic Association holding a “Know Your Candidates Meeting” on Monday, Sept. 28, the Boone Chamber of Commerce and Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce will also hold candidate forums for the 2015 municipal elections on Oct. 19. / Read more…

Sept. 23, 2015. A number of questions have been submitted to the Blowing Rock Civic Association for their “Know Your Candidates” meeting. The community is invited to attend this important meeting and to email questions for the candidates to [email protected] before 5:00 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 25. / Read more…

Sept. 18, 2015. Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., today voted in favor of legislation that would temporarily bar federal taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood and strengthen protections for babies that survive abortion. / Read more…

Sept. 10, 2015. Governor Pat McCrory continued his sweeping reform of North Carolina’s unemployment insurance program with the signing of Senate Bill 15 during a ceremony at the Gaston County JobLink facility in Gastonia. / Read more…

Sept. 10, 2015. Deborah K. Ross, former Wake County representative to the North Carolina House, will be the special featured speaker at the 2015 Fall Rally of the Watauga County Democratic Party on Saturday, Sept. 19. Rep. Ross has been prominently mentioned statewide as a potential Democratic candidate to challenge Sen. Richard Burr in the 2016 elections. / Read more…

Sept. 3, 2015. As on-going budget negotiations have continued here in Raleigh, well past what we all hoped could have been completed by July 1, I wanted to take a moment and update you on our progress. / Read more…

Aug. 19, 2015. The Watauga County Board of Elections met on Tuesday to appoint precinct judges for the 2015 municipal elections following nominations from the Watauga County Democratic Party and Watauga County Republican Party. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

July 17, 2015. Candidate filing for the 2015 municipal elections ended at noon on Friday, July 17. See who all is running for seats in Avery County above. By Jesse Wood & Debbie Carter / Read more…

July 16, 2015. Candidate filing for the 2015 municipal elections ended at noon on Friday, July 17. See who all is running for seats in Watauga County above. Compiled By Jesse Wood & Debbie Carter / Read more…

June 2, 2015. It was an honor and a privilege this week to welcome members of our armed forces – including men and women from North Carolina’s National Guard – to the General Assembly as a part of our Military Appreciation Day. / Read more…