Holly Jones, who grew up in Wadesboro, has announced a run for North Carolina lieutenant governor.
She is the daughter of Neal Jones, and he said, “a product of Anson County Schools.”
Holly Jones has served as a Buncombe County commissioner in Asheville for the past seven years, and also served seven years on the Asheville City Council. In an interview with the Associated Press, Jones said she wants to present an “alternate vision” the conservative agenda Republicans have been pushing since taking over North Carolina’s state government.
In particular, Jones told the AP she was unhappy with the General Assembly’s actions that have limited local government.
“I’ve been a local elected official for a long, long time and what the General Assembly is doing to local government we just can’t stand for,” Jones said.
She added that she would also advocate for a “progressive agenda” focused on supporting families and children and increasing funds for public education.
She officially announced her candidacy last Wednesday at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College.
“It’s the heavy hand of big government by the party that says they’re about small government,” she said. “These Republicans are more interested in power than they are in governing. They’ve caused uncertainty and instability just because they can.”
Budget cuts have left “our schools underfunded and our teachers underpaid,” Jones added. “They have cut university funding while raising tuition on the students. They’re shortchanging our children and our future.”
In order to unseat current Lt. Gov. Dan Forest, Jones will first have to win the Democratic primary against Linda Coleman, who narrowly lost to Forest in the 2012 general election. Former state employee Robert Wilson also plans to run in the Democratic primary, according to Asheville’s Citizen-Times.
Jones’ campaign said in a statement that, while an elected official, Jones and her colleagues have helped create nearly 2,900 jobs while passing ambitious carbon emission reduction goals and awarding high supplements for local teacher salaries.
Jones added that being a seasoned elected local official with accomplishments would bring a “breath of fresh air” in Raleigh.
Reach Abby Cavenaugh at 704-694-2161, ext. 2301, and follow her on Twitter @TheAnsonRecord.