Items from across the Triad and beyond

Hed

NC Rep. Larry Womble announced on Tuesday that he will not run for office. Womble spoke by speaker phone from his home during a press conference coordinated by Rep. Earline Parmon at the Forsyth County Board of Elections.

It was the first time he has spoken publicly since he was critically injured in a car accident in December. Womble’s plans prompted a flurry of election filings among African-American Democrats in Forsyth County that are jockeying for position as a number of seats open.

Womble had planned to run for the NC Senate District 32 seat, but announced instead he would support Parmon as a candidate for the seat. Winston-Salem City Councilman James Taylor Jr., a Democrat, and Republican Reginald Reid have also filed for the seat. Womble’s retirement and Parmon’s entry into the Senate race opened vacancies in their respective House districts.

Forsyth County Commissioner Everette Witherspoon filed for NC House District 71, Womble’s seat, during the press conference. Evelyn Terry, a former Winston-Salem City Councilwoman, filed for the seat on Monday. Jimmie Bonham filed for House District 72, which is currently represented by Parmon, who expressed confidence in him as a potential successor.

Forsyth County Commissioner Walter Marshall said after the press conference that he plans to file for the seat on Thursday. The election ballot has started to fill up since filing opened on Feb. 13, with tight primary contests expected in both Forsyth and Guilford counties as redistricting and ambitions for higher office open up new seats. Sen. Pete Brunstetter, a Republican from Lewisville, has filed for reelection in Senate District 31.

Larry Brown of Kernersville will vie with Debra Conrad of Winston-Salem in the Republican primary for NC House District 74. The seat is currently occupied by Rep. Dale Folwell, but became open with Folwell’s entry into the lieutenant governor’s race.

Brown currently represents District 73, which was eliminated through redistricting. Conrad serves on the Forsyth County Commission. Kernersville Democrat David Moore is also seeking the seat. As expected, Rep. Julia Howard has filed for reelection in NC House District 79, which covers all of Davie County and part of Forsyth. She will defend her seat in the Republican primary against Bill Whiteheart, who currently serves on the Forsyth County Commission.

The three Republicans representing District B on the county commission whose seats are up for reelection all filed, including Chairman Richard Linville, Gloria Whisenhunt and Dave Plyler. They will be challenged in the Republican primary by John R. Bost, Mark Baker and Bob Prescott. Guilford County School Board at-large member Sandra Alexander will have two challengers: Michael Norbury of Greensboro and Joshua Lewis of High Point.

Linda Welborn and Dave Owens filed for the District 5 seat on the school board that is currently represented by Paul Daniels. US Rep. Howard Coble filed for reelection in the redrawn 6th Congressional District, which

now hugs the Virginia state line, stretching from Surry County in the west to Person County in the east, and picking up parts of Guilford, Alamance, Orange, Durham and Granville counties. Billy Yow, a Guilford County commissioner, and Jim Allen of Burlington — both Republicans — have also filed for the seat.

Gardenia Henley, a Democrat and retired federal government employee who investigated allegations of election fraud in Forsyth County in 2010, has filed for governor. Former Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory, a Republican, also filed for the office, along with Democrats Bill Faison and Gary M. Dunn. Faison currently serves in the NC Senate representing Orange and Caswell counties.

Commissioner of Agriculture Steve Troxler, who lives in Browns Summit, filed for reelection.

Republican Mike Causey, a Guilford County farmer, is challenging Democratic incumbent Wayne Goodwin for state commissioner of insurance.

Sen. Gladys Robinson, a Democratic incumbent from Pleasant Garden, filed for NC Senate District 28, joining challenger Bruce Davis, a fellow Democrat from High Point who currently serves on the Guilford County Commission.

Filing closes on Feb. 29. — JG

Foreclosures down, increased assistance announced

State Attorney General Roy Cooper announced North Carolina will receive $338 million as part of a $37 billion national agreement with the country’s five biggest mortgage servicers to “help lower mortgage payments for struggling homeowners” along with new rules to protect against improper foreclosures.

The agreement prohibits previous foreclosure abuses, including the practice of robo-signing that Guilford County Register of Deeds Jeff Thigpen helped expose.

The package includes $33.6 million set aside for foreclosure victims in North Carolina, along with funds to pay for housing counselors, financial fraud detection and prosecution. The money will also pay for principal reduction, help homeowners at risk of default and refinance loans.

RealtyTrac, which keeps track of nationwide foreclosure numbers, reported that foreclosure filings fell by 7.13 percent from December 2011 to January 2012 in North Carolina, while increasing 3 percent nationally during the same time. There were a total of 2,541 foreclosure filings in the state last month, according to the report that came out Feb. 16. — EG