Seven candidates for three Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners seats answered questions Wednesday, Oct. 7, at Central United Methodist Church in downtown Concord.

Chris Miller, founder and publisher of The Cabarrus Compass, moderated the forum. The candidates fielded five questions on school funding, affordable housing, partisan divisions on the board and the commission's relationship with the school board. Each had two minutes per question.

The candidates are Thomas Hill, Dan Redding, James Bailey, Ingrid Nurse, Kristel Swayze, Phil Henry and Commission Vice Chair Ian Patrick. Three of them will win seats on the Nov. 3 ballot.

School funding and the $400 million bond

School funding was among the five topics. The Cabarrus County Schools budget accounts for nearly $117 million of the county budget, according to Patrick's May candidate questionnaire on Inform Cabarrus. Patrick, the only incumbent in the race, wrote that he found it difficult to approve budgets with line items like cable TV in private offices and Rotary club memberships for staff.

Voters will also decide Nov. 3 whether to approve up to $400 million in General Obligation bonds for Cabarrus County Schools, Kannapolis City Schools and Rowan-Cabarrus Community College. The school bond portion is $340 million. The community college portion is $60 million. According to the county's bond disclosure statement, the estimated property tax increase to service the school bonds is $42.50 per year per $100,000 of assessed property value.

Affordable housing

Housing affordability was another focus at the forum. More than 23,000 Cabarrus households spend more than 30% of their income on housing, and the median home sale price hovered around $390,000 in 2026, according to The Cabarrus Compass. Dan Redding cited NC Chamber projections in his candidate questionnaire warning the county could be short nearly 16,000 homes by 2029 if current growth continues.

At an Oct. 1 Central Carolina Association of Realtors breakfast, candidates outlined their housing positions. Bailey emphasized housing variety and higher-paying jobs. Hill focused on increasing supply and protecting property rights. Nurse highlighted affordable housing and homelessness. Patrick called for faster permitting. Redding stressed partnerships, and Swayze advocated for coordinated growth and affordable-housing incentives.

Partisan divisions

Multiple candidates have pointed to board dysfunction as a reason they entered the race. Kristel Swayze wrote in her May Inform Cabarrus questionnaire that partisan actions by commissioners led to two lawsuits she said cost taxpayers over $512,000. She cited the firing of the county manager and an attempt to seat an incoming commissioner that she called illegal.

"What made me decide to run was the hyper-partisanship that existed in our County," James Bailey, a retired chief deputy with the Cabarrus County Sheriff's Office, wrote in his May Inform Cabarrus questionnaire.

Hill, a Libertarian, wrote in his August questionnaire that he does not owe any faction a vote and is not running to please party leaders in Raleigh or Washington. Phil Henry also participated in the forum; his positions were not available in public questionnaires as of publication.

What voters need to know

The deadline to register to vote is Friday, Oct. 9. Early in-person voting begins Thursday, Oct. 15, and runs through Oct. 31. Same-day registration is available during early voting but not on Election Day, Nov. 3.

The Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners' next regular meeting is Monday, Oct. 19, at 6 p.m. at the Governmental Center.