The Guilford County Democratic Party’s House District 60 executive committee met virtually on Saturday, Nov. 15, voting to nominate High Point City Councilmember Amanda Cook to fill the vacant House seat previously held by former Rep. Cecil Brockman.
Brockman resigned on Oct. 31 after being charged with having a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old boy. House District 60 includes most of High Point, as well as parts of Jamestown and southwestern Greensboro. His term runs through Jan. 1, 2027.
Cook, the party’s nominee to succeed him, is a former public-school teacher and the founder of Teacher’s Edge, a nonprofit focused on fostering “leadership and creativity” in education. She is currently serving on the High Point City Council, and moving to Raleigh in January would require her to resign halfway through her municipal term.
According to her campaign website, Cook plans to focus on equal rights, health care access, and public education policy during her time in the General Assembly.
“We have to strengthen year-round economic development here in High Point in order to build the infrastructure for our families,” Cook said in her remarks during the candidate forum preceding the vote. “So my first priority is to make sure that we do not have a city full of Title One schools.”
Eligible voters for the nomination included Democratic officials who live in House District 60. Elected leaders, precinct chairs, and precinct vice chairs within the organized Democratic Party were all permitted to vote.
After the committee vote, Cook’s name will be sent to Gov. Josh Stein for formal appointment. If he approves, she will be sworn in and will assume representation of House District 60 in the General Assembly.
Cook was one of four candidates seeking appointment to the open seat. The others were Bruce Davis, who received 10 votes; Joseph Alston, who received 26; and Angie Williams McMichael, who received 52.5. With 108.5 weighted votes, Cook received 55% of the vote.
Guilford County Democratic Party Chair Kathy Kirkpatrick congratulated Cook after the results were announced.
“We had four excellent candidates, and I am proud of all four who ran,” Kirkpatrick said. “I look forward to having a person in the seat who will vote for her Democratic values.”
North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Anderson Clayton also praised Cook’s nomination in an interview with WRAL on Saturday.
“We are excited to have a good public servant in that position to be able to represent the people of Guilford County,” Clayton said.
Cook also received an endorsement from the Progressive Caucus of the North Carolina Democratic Party leading up to the vote.
Not all local leaders supported her selection. Melvin “Skip” Alston, chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners, criticized Cook’s nomination in an interview with the Carolina Journal, arguing that the majority minority district should be represented by an African American candidate.
“No one in the African American community asked her to run and be our voice,” Alston said. “Why she felt that she is more qualified to speak for the minorities in that district rather than having a representative of their own, behooves [sic] me. The only reason she won was that the majority of the African American districts were not organized.”
“We have always had an African American in that seat,” he added. “I could see if we did not have any qualified African Americans who applied for the position, but we had three qualified applicants who did.”