The candidates in the Democratic runoff for Labor Commissioner will debate each other at the Thursday meeting of the Rowan County Democratic Party at 7 p.m. in the Commissionersí Chambers on the second floor of the County Administration Building, 130 W. Innes St., Salisbury. The public is invited to hear the candidates and pose questions.
In the May 6 Democratic Primary, Mary Fant Donnan came in first, followed closely by John C. Brooks. None of the candidates received the 40 percent of the vote necessary to avoid a runoff. Brooks requested a runoff on May 13. The runoff election will be held Tuesday, June 24.
Donnan is a program officer for the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation in Winston-Salem. She grew up in southwestern Virginia, is a graduate of Davidson College, and received her master’s degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Adelaide in South Australia. Prior to joining the foundation, Donnan served as policy analyst and director of research and policy at the North Carolina Department of Labor. Her efforts there focused on workforce and economic development. Donnan has held the position of development director for the North Carolina Center for Public Policy Research as well as serving in the public schools as a music teacher.
John C. Brooks, who finished second, will participate in the debate.
Ty Richardson and Robin Anderson, who finished third and fourth respectively, have requested a recount.
Brooks was labor commissioner from 1977 to 1993. A graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill and the University of Chicago, Brooks works in the field of labor law. He is a member of the Wake County Progressive Democrats, the executive committee of the Wake County Democratic Party, the State Executive Committee of the N.C. Democratic Party and the State Council of Review of the Democratic Party.
Rowan County Democratic Party meetings are open to the public.