While the buzz in Virginia might be focused on the White House, Roanoke residents will also be electing a new Mayor and several other local offices.

Councilwoman Stephanie Moon-Reynolds started her career in Public Service at age 20 working in the City Clerk’s office, working her way up to eventually being named City Clerk. After 13 years in that position, she ran and won a seat on the City Council in 2020.

Moon-Reynolds was elected as a nonpartisan and is currently running as an Independent.

“I was comfortable with it because I wanted to be the voice for the people and not be a voice for a party,” she told WSLS news.

Should she win, Moon-Reynolds would be the city’s first woman mayor. At 66, she is a mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She announced her candidacy for mayor after expressing frustration that the City Council seemed to make too many decisions behind closed doors.

Former Roanoke City Mayor David Bowers, a Republican, is running to make changes to the current direction of the city.

“If you’re happy with what’s going on in Roanoke, you have a choice between one of those two. If you’re like me and you’re not happy with what’s going on in Roanoke, then I ask for your consideration and your vote,” Bowers said.

Bowers would be the first Republican to hold the office of Mayor since 2020. Bowers served in the Mayor’s office for 16 years as a Democrat but is now running as a Republican.

“The [Democratic] party became very liberal,” he said. “My wife and I are sociable Democrats; we’re not socialists.”

“There’s a deep and wide level of discontent about the city and City Council, and people tell me they’re fed up,” Bowers continued. “What I’m hearing over the last several years is that there’s an increase in crime and gun violence. People are afraid. … That’s not the Roanoke I knew.”

Bowers cited specific local issues as a concern including the City Council’s decision to do away with single-family zoning.

Democrat Joe Cobb currently serves as Vice-Mayor and plans to focus on transportation, education, and homelessness with a special focus on adding additional affordable housing units and supporting the “What’s Good Roanoke” initiative.

Cobb is a minister and would be the first openly gay Mayor in Roanoke.

Cobb has written and spoken extensively on homelessness and has been a major supporter of increased multi-family housing, an issue that puts him on the opposite side of both Bowers and Moon-Reynolds.

“I don’t buy this notion that the fear of seeing increased multi-family housing is going to ruin our neighborhoods,” Vice-Mayor Joe Cobb said.

Moon-Reynolds was the only councilperson to vote against the change in zoning and Bowers has said he will try to reverse the decision, should he be elected.

 Mayor Sherman Lea announced in December that he would not seek reelection. Lea has served as Mayor for nearly 8 years and served 12 years on the City Council.

At last reporting, Cobb had raised $46,801, with Moon-Reynolds at $39,188 and Bowers at $23,258.