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Orange County From left: Allen Buansi and Jonah Garson PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE CANDIDATES
Voter’s Choice Between NC House 56 candidates Allen Buansi and Jonah Garson, Orange County voters may find it tough to decide who to send to Raleigh. BY BRIAN ROSENZWEIG backtalk@indyweek.com
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n Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and Hillsborough, local political activists often say the primary elections are more impactful than the midterms. This year, in Orange County, that’s never been truer. It’s common knowledge that Democrats outnumber Republicans so vastly that whoever wins the Democratic primary is almost guaranteed to win in the fall. In 2018, for instance, state House Representative Verla Insko won reelection by a margin of 86 percent—the highest Democratic majority in North Carolina that year. But last fall, Insko announced she is retiring after 26 years in the House. Two men—both young lawyers—have placed bids to take up her work in Orange County’s NC House District 56. Allen Buansi first announced his run in an exclusive with the INDY Week back in September. Buansi served on the
Chapel Hill Town Council from 2017 to December 2021, and has experience practicing law at the UNC Center for Civil Rights. Jonah Garson, the chair for the Orange County Democratic Party, announced his bid that month, too, just a week after Insko made her retirement plans public. Garson is an attorney at Parry Law in Chapel Hill with a focus on corporate law, and he served as the Democratic voter protection director during the 2019 special election. Despite their differing backgrounds in the political arena, both Garson and Buansi say they bring the experience that will be vital to the role. Buansi says his experience serving on Chapel Hill’s town council is critical. “I’m the only one who has served in elected office,” Buansi says.
During his time on the council, Buansi helped to create and pass the Town Criminal Justice Debt Fund, a program which provides debt relief to community members facing excessive court fees, the first of its kind in the state. Buansi also helped to increase funds to the town’s Emergency Housing Assistance program, approve a $10 million affordable housing bond, pass a nondiscrimination ordinance, and issue the town’s first Climate Action and Response Plan. Buansi also notes his service at the state level. In 2018, Governor Roy Cooper appointed him to the Local Governmental Employees’ Retirement System Board of Trustees. “I’m the only one that has that experience of actually working with Republicans to move forward important government business,” Buansi says. Buansi says he believes his lived experiences also bring essential insights to his work. He says he’s been involved in politics since a young age, as he was first inspired by his mother’s work as an environmental justice activist. “She was such an important part of my upbringing, such an important part of orienting me towards equity and civil rights for everyone,” Buansi says. Being a working parent to young children also informs his work. “That’s a perspective that is sorely lacking,” Buansi says. “And there’s so much more that our state can be doing to make life easier for working families, including providing childcare subsidies, funding more childcare subsidies, and paid parental leave for our teachers. And those are the kinds of issues that I have come to know well because I’m a working parent, because my wife and I have children under 18.” Those who have worked closely with Buansi say they think his background in civil rights law gives him an important perspective, an ability to listen to disparate voices and to center communities of color. Austin Hahn, Buansi’s campaign manager, says he feels Buansi’s experiences on town council and as a civil rights lawyer mean he knows how to “get in the weeds” with policy, and pass legislation across party lines. “He really does his due diligence on policies, and knows how to build coalitions and go from split votes to unanimous voices,” Hahn says. “And [if] we’re in the minority in the House, that’s something we need.” Max Winzelberg, a student field captain for Buansi who attends East Chapel Hill High School, says he believes Buansi has a sincere passion for the state and local community and wants to make them more equitable. “I feel like Allen’s shown that he’s dedicated to this community,” Winzelberg says. “He’s grateful to have grown up here, and I think that sense of pride about North Carolina is what he wants everyone to experience INDYweek.com
April 27, 2022
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