CD4 Officer Candidates
At the NC-CD4 reorganization convention on September 7, we will elect and/or reelect our CD4 officers so they are representative of our member counties and conform to the gender and diversity guidelines in the NCDP Plan of Organization, Section 3.04:
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Where there are sufficient counties in a district, no two (2) elected officers shall live within the same county.
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Among the Chair and three Vice Chair offices,
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​one of these must be filled by a person of a racial or ethnic minority which constitutes at least twenty percent (20%) of the registered Democrats in that district, and
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one of these offices must be filled by a person thirty-six (36) years of age or younger.
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The following people have indicated an interest to serve or continue to serve and have submitted a bio through our form. This slate of officers meets the gender and diversity guidelines in the NCDP Plan of Organization, as mentioned above. Nominations can also be made from the floor. If there are no other nominations, we can vote to accept these candidates by acclamation rather than having multiple ballots.​
CHAIR
Diana Robinson, Orange County
Diana currently serves as your CD4 chair, working hard to support our counties, maintain our communications channels, and elect Democrats across the district and state. A lifelong Democrat, she was proud to represent NC as a delegate to the DNC convention in Chicago this year, and she hopes to get to cast her vote in December as one of the state's 16 presidential electors. Diana is also vice chair of Eno Precinct, Region 7 Director for the Democratic Women of North Carolina, and a member of the SEC and NCDPʻs Native American Caucus. She previously served as third vice chair for Orange County.
She helped reorganize the Democratic Party in Hays County, Texas, where they flipped that red county to blue in 2018 and 2020 with voter education and GOTV efforts. She was also the founding chair of the Kyle/Buda-Area Democrats, which became a leading force in the county. Texas Democratic Party delegates selected her to be one of the state’s presidential electors in 2020.
Prior to moving to Texas, she lived in Durham for 20 years and raised her two sons there. In the early/mid-2000s, she was active with the Durham Democrats and served as an SEC member, precinct chair, and officer. She was a founding member of the Progressive Democrats of NC in 2004.
A proud graduate of the UNC School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Diana is managing editor of Alert Diver magazine and a freelance writer, editor, and graphic designer. She is also a cancer warrior and current survivor.
FIRST VICE CHAIR
Aidan Hennessy, Durham County
It has been an honor to be first vice chair of the Congressional District 4 Democratic Party for the past six months. Since I was first elected to fill a vacancy in this position six months ago, I have enjoyed meeting lots of wonderful Democratic Party activists and leaders throughout this district — and I have participated in canvassing in almost every town, or in the areas adjacent to them, within our district. A high turnout rate in this safe Democratic district would go a long way toward helping Democrats running in competitive statewide elections here in North Carolina. I’d like to continue to do more of the work that I am already doing toward that goal. So please vote for me to continue to serve as your congressional district’s first vice chair.
SECOND VICE CHAIR
Esther Bell Coleman, Chatham County
Esther is a leadership committee member of the North Williams Democratic Precinct in Chatham County and has served on this committee for over 3 years. During that time, Esther has championed the full representation and engagement of voters of color in the Democratic Party. Her achievements while serving on the precinct committee have included the research and development of the Chatham County Democratic Party BIPOC History Quiz 2024: What do you know about the BIPOC history of this place where you sit or stand?
For the recent BIPOC canvas, Esther developed a training module titled We’re All Neighbors in the North Williams
Democratic Precinct: Building Relationships Through Effective Cross-Cultural and Interracial Communication. She also is currently working with a committee that is developing materials to inform voters about the Republican Party’s Project 2025. Esther is well-known for advocating for diversity, equity, and inclusion within the Chatham County Democratic Party.
Esther has been a lifelong Democrat and a public servant. She has engaged in public service in a range of capacities including the following:
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As executive director of diversity, equity, and inclusion in Guilford County Schools, NC;
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As director of the Durham Workforce Development Board;
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As senior employment program coordinator for BECOMING, a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Agency (SAMHSA) initiative for adolescents transitioning to a productive adulthood;
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As Chatham County’s director of human relations;
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As director of instructional enhancement for Palm Beach County Schools in FL, where she coordinated the Undoing Racism Initiative;
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As a human resource specialist and an instructional specialist for the Virginia Beach City Public Schools (VBCPS); and
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As a kindergarten and first-grade teacher in VBCPS and other school districts in VA.
Esther holds a master’s degree in education and human relations from The George Washington University and a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Averett University. As importantly, she hails from a family that historically and presently advocated for the equal and fair treatment of all people regardless of their backgrounds, most especially their race, ethnicity, and/or class. What she has done in public service has aligned with her family’s values and informs everything she does.
THIRD VICE CHAIR
Chuck Mihaliak, Wake County
Chuck currently serves as the secretary/treasurer of Precinct 20-08 in Apex, a role he has held since 2020. He is a lifelong Democrat but first became active in the Democratic Party ahead of the 2016 election. Since then, he has been actively involved in GOTV within his precinct as well as other precincts across Apex and with the campaigns of several city, county, and state representatives. In 2021 he worked closely with a group of local Apex residents to form a PAC to support passage of a local bond for much-needed infrastructure improvements.
Chuck recently retired after a more than 30-year career in agriculture. His motivation and focus are now on giving back through community volunteer activities (e.g., he is an active volunteer with the Western Wake Crisis Ministry), and he is ready to dedicate more time toward electing Democrats at every level.
SECRETARY
Bonnie Bevan, Orange County
Since fall of 2020, Bonnie has been the Kings Mill (Orange County) precinct chair. She has also been an active volunteer for phone banking and canvassing and serves on the events committee. She was a delegate to the 2024 Orange County and NCDP conventions. On average we’ve seen a low volunteer participation rate, and high-interest individuals must step up! Recently she has been the secretary on the board of directors for a Chapel Hill nonprofit, The Chelsea Theater.
CD4 Candidates for NCDP Committees
At the NC-CD4 reorganization convention on September 7, we will elect one CD4 representative for each of the following NCDP committees:
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NCDP Council of Review Committee
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NCDP Resolutions and Platform Committee
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NCDP Plan of Organization Review Committee
You can find more information about these committees in Sections 8 and 9 of the NCDP Plan of Organization. If you are interested in running for one of these committee positions, please complete this form.
NCDP Resolutions and Platform Committee
Ryan Jenkins, Durham County
I'm the Durham County and NC-CD04 chair for the Resolutions and Platform Committees and currently serve on and assist Senator Floyd McKissick, who serves as chair of the State Resolutions and Platform Committee. I serve as a direct conduit for our district and proudly champion the causes important to all our members. As I have served on this body for several years now, I also have significant influence and understanding of the committee. Please reelect me to the RPC so I may continue to assist in the important work of crafting our Democratic statement of values.
NCDP Plan of Organization Review Committee
N.C. Rep. Renée Price, Orange County
Throughout my life journey, I have faced and addressed many challenges, both personally and professionally. My parents told me never to take a defeatist attitude, so I continue to fight for freedom and justice in the North Carolina General Assembly. I represent the people of House District 50 — Orange (part) and Caswell counties — where I advocate for children to get a sound basic education, for women to receive reproductive healthcare, for employees to earn livable salaries and benefits, for farmers to thrive and survive, and for families to dwell in safe housing and nurturing environments.
In addition, I have remained active in the Democratic Party, including representing the Orange County Democratic Party and CD4 on the Platform and Resolutions Committee. While I enjoy that role, I am interested in exploring other aspects of the Party operations — i.e., as a member of the Plan of Organization Review Committee. I have reviewed and updated bylaws and guidelines for other groups and organizations and would like to contribute to refining the NCDP Plan.
Sander Pomper, Durham County
I am presently a member of this committee, and I would like to continue to serve on it. A potential long-term project of the committee, which is just beginning, would be a review and the possible update of the entire plan.
NCDP Council of Review Committee
Ryan Jenkins, Durham County
I'm the current member for NC-CD04. I am heavily involved in several cases as well as mediations and am in the process of creating a subcommittee to iron out fixes to the NCDP Plan of Organization. I'm not opposed to stepping down in favor of another person, but now is definitely not the right time, as it would throw all sorts of schedules and plans out the window. Please reelect me and allow me to finish what I've started — what I was elected to do.
Terry Mahaffey, Wake County
I previously served on the Council of Review from approximately 2018 to 2021. I believe the current Council of Review could benefit from my institutional knowledge of how the body can and should operate. COR is not a policy-making body and exists solely to enforce the Plan of Organization. We primarily adjudicate procedural issues and occasionally code of conduct issues. We should be wary of people using the code of conduct as a tool during policy disputes. Disputes should be adjudicated in a timely fashion in all cases.
We must work to build trust in this body, because without faith that there is a neutral arbiter simply calling balls and strikes on our Plan of Organization, trust in the party as a whole will erode.
I currently am in my second term on the Apex Town Council. I was a DNC delegate in Chicago, I serve on the SEC and previously have been on the COR committee, a precinct chair, and an "area coordinator" in Wake. I have been active in the party since 2016. I would appreciate your support and ask for your vote.
