Chapel Hill council member blames political climate for decision to step down
Searing, who ran a heated but unsuccessful campaign in 2023 to unseat Chapel Hill Mayor Jess Anderson, has served on the council since 2021.
He was the only one of two candidates supported in the 2021 election by the grassroots group Chapel Hill Alliance for a Livable Town, which advocates for shorter buildings, slower growth and environmental preservation. He regularly stood alone against other council members during the first two years of his four-year term.
The opposition has softened somewhat since the 2023 election, with other council members voicing support for his ideas at times.
Karen Stegman is one of those voices. She was elected to the council with CHALT's support in 2017 but lost that support in 2021, because of her development votes. On Wednesday, she stepped down from the council, five months before her term expires, because her family is moving to Carrboro.
Chapel Hill races have always been politically charged, but in the last several years, Anderson and fellow council members have noted an increase in anonymous attacks and threats in comments from the dais and in blog posts and campaign messages.
In an email message announcing his decision Thursday, Searing said he's enjoyed his time on the council, but 'the thought of enduring a third election in our current local political environment makes my decision today not to run again this November an easy one.'
He noted other people involved in local issues are also 'finding other ways to volunteer and civically engage.'
'A few of the reasons include multiple special interest groups demanding several thousand-word 'election' questionnaires on obscure topics, political attacks that often get personal and even extend to family members and student volunteers, a local social media cesspool where any questioning of impractical or unpopular ideas can quickly lead to accusations of racism or sexism, and the appearance on the scene of well-funded anonymous-donor political group activity,' he said.
The 2023 races set records for how much money the candidates and political groups raised — over $251,000 reported prior to the election — largely due to donations collected by political-action committees and local advocacy groups.
Triangle Blog Blog, an online source for news and opinion, and the nonprofit Next Chapel Hill-Carrboro group emerged to counter CHALT's view of how Chapel Hill should be managed and grow.
Next also has a NEXT Action Fund, a 501(c)4, or so-called 'dark money,' political action group that does not have to disclose its finances, and some of its supporters write for the blog. The group responded to online allegations about its money and donors by posting some information online.
CHALT is allied with the Chapel Hill Leadership political action committee, which raised the most money ever in its history during the 2023 election cycle after the organizer of a rumored, new political action committee said that group would not be forming and urged donations to the Chapel Hill Leadership PAC.
Anderson has announced she will run for another two-year term in November. A challenger has not yet emerged.
Four Chapel Hill Town Council seats will be on the Nov. 4 ballot. Council member Paris Miller-Foushee has announced she will run again, and a challenger, Planning Commission member Wes McMahon, also plans to run.
The filing period for the 2025 election runs from 8 a.m. July 7 to noon July 18.
His supporters may be disappointed with his decision to leave the council, Searing said, but he will stay involved in local projects and activities.
'I share that feeling,' Searing said. 'But we've created a local political gauntlet where the price demanded for participating — personally, reputationally, and professionally — far outweighs my strong commitment to public service.'
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