Bryan Freeborn takes the talk-radio heat

Four City Council members voted to switch Asheville’s electoral system to partisan voting, but only one — Bryan Freeborn — found himself behind the mic on a talk-radio show as the Let Asheville Vote petition drive came to a close.

Critics of the switch have thrown their support behind the petition, which ultimately garnered close to 6,200 signatures (a minimum of 5,000 was required to force a referendum on the matter; whether the Board of Elections will certify that that number of signers were registered Asheville voters, as required, remains to be seen). Many of those critics have taken Freeborn and his colleagues to task for changing the system.

So passions were running high yesterday afternoon, as LAV raced to get the petitions in before the 5 p.m. deadline and Freeborn appeared as a guest on WWNC-570’s Take a Stand! with Matt Mittan, a popular local talk show.

Freeborn’s hour on the program — click here to listen to it — provided both intense dialogue and gripping political theater, as the Council member, who’s up for reelection this fall, faced off with one angry caller after another (including no less than former Council member and mayoral candidate Joe Dunn). At one point, Mittan even persuaded Freeborn to sign the petition, which Freeborn had previously refused to do.

Throughout the program, Mittan fielded updates on the petition drive, which reached a frenzy in its final minutes. Freeborn, who has said in recent weeks that he didn’t believe there was a groundswell of public opposition to partisan voting, congratulated the petitioners and said their efforts have served as “a valuable exercise in democracy.”

— Jon Elliston, news editor

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

About Jon Elliston
Former Mountain Xpress managing editor Jon Elliston is the senior editor at WNC magazine.

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

7 thoughts on “Bryan Freeborn takes the talk-radio heat

  1. silverman

    so her logic in the video is by forcing the local council elections to be a partisan affair, the citizens will have more of a chance to vote for Democrats who will then, miraculously “turn around” the economy, the environment, and the general direction of our country?
    what is truly dissapointing, is that she obviously believes this crap. that they can facilitate some kind of “Democrat” takeover of the local governemnt which will save us from all the woes of the world.
    did she notice how the democrats, once they ‘took over’ congress caved to the presidents will over Iraq?
    how long do we have to futilely believe that the Democrats represent change when, at every turn, they consistantly prove to us that they are merely one side of the same corrupt coin?

  2. I love Robin Cape and Bryan Freeborn. They appear to be two of the most self important people that I’ve seen in local government. But, they don’t bother the stoners like crazy Carl, so nobody cares.

  3. silverman

    right, jason, nobody but the 5 thousand some-odd people who signed the petition.

    but you were close, tough, in trying to make a humerous observation. keep trying. some day i’ll laugh.

Leave a Reply

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.