The people who teach our kids, staff our county offices, maintain our roads, and keep our public spaces running cannot afford to live in the county they serve. That is not an accident. It is the result of a commission that has consistently prioritized keeping costs low for the county budget over keeping wages livable for county workers.

Those are not the same thing. And the difference matters enormously to the people on the wrong side of it.

What I will do:

• Fight for a living wage floor for all county employees and contracted workers—not minimum wage, a living wage. There is a difference, and anyone working full time for Forsyth County should be able to afford to live here.

• Require living wage compliance as a condition of county contracts. If you want to do business with Forsyth County, you pay your workers fairly.

• Advocate for transparent pay equity reporting for county employees—across race, gender, and job classification—and push to close gaps where they exist.

• Oppose any attempt to cut county workforce or outsource public services as a budget shortcut.

Good government means being a good employer. We are not there yet.