Leading up to the election in November, Bella Huang recalled being told repeatedly that her race for Cary Town Council would be a close one. Huang ran to represent Cary's District C, which was held for more than three decades by recently retired council member Jack Smith.
"People might say, 'It'll be very challenging for you,' not only from my friends, but also from other elected officials,'" she said. "So that made me feel, I need to work harder and harder."
Huang, who raised about $100K for her campaign, ended up winning her election by a significant margin, getting nearly twice the number of votes as her opponent, former Western Wake Republican Club president Renee Miller.
Sue Mu, who ran in a crowded field of eight candidates vying for three at-large seats on the Apex Town Council, also dealt with similar pushback. She sometimes received comments on social media, questioning her qualifications and even her citizenship. But Mu, who has lived in Wake County for more than 20 years, said she prepared herself for such reactions, since her community is not used to seeing Asians run for local office.
"It only strengthened my resolve to make Apex a welcoming place for everyone," she said.
Like Huang, Mu received substantial donations, compared to her competitors, and had the backing of Apex Democrats. She ended up being the top vote-getter in that election, becoming the first elected Asian American to serve on the Apex Town Council.
"We are the most hardworking," Mu said, regarding Asian women.
"I had more than 50 volunteers from our community alone, lots of them high schoolers," Mu added. "They had been out there, knocking on doors, canvassing every week."
Engaging Asian voters at the local level
Huang and Mu are the latest in a growing number of Asian women in the Triangle to win seats in local office. In recent years, that that has included former Chapel Hill Town Council member Hongbin Gu, current state representatives Maria Cervania and Ya Liu, both of Wake County, Cary Town Council Member Sarika Bansal, and Durham County Commissioner Nida Allam, who recently launched her campaign for Congress – all of them representing firsts for their communities.
Rep. Liu is a former Cary councilwoman. When she won her seat in 2019, Huang said that it motivated her to become more involved in her community.
"(Liu's victory) was great news for all of us because we never knew we could have a seat at the table," Huang said. "It made a lot of Chinese American community members feel so proud of that."
The two newly elected officials have a lot in common. Mu and Huang are Chinese immigrants and small business owners who raised their children in Wake County. They also founded MOVENC in 2023, a political action committee aimed at increasing civic engagement among Asian Americans in North Carolina, and they also helped fundraise for Josh Stein's campaign for governor in 2024.
Asians represent the fastest growing racial demographic in Cary and Apex. They made up 19% of Cary's population and 17% in Apex, in 2023, according to American Community Survey data, though Mu says that percentage is likely higher. Across the country, voter turnout from Asian Americans has risen sharply over the past decade, in part due to the growing size of diaspora communities as well as mobilization efforts by groups like Indian American Impact and NC Asian Americans Together, which was founded in 2016 to address the lack of outreach to Asian voters.
Along with the lack of voter outreach, Huang acknowledged that there is a sentiment among some folks in the Chinese community to keep to themselves.
"There's a Chinese saying (that translates to) 'We only blow the snow in front of our own house.' That means people only focus on their own job, their own family," she said. "But you also have to care about the whole community. Especially (Asians), we are the minority. If you don't speak up, you will be ignored."
Huang and Mu said they met many first-time voters during this past election.
"I saw so many voters come up to me, shake my hand and say, I wasn't interested in municipal elections before, but this year, I have to come out to vote because of you," Mu said.
Addressing rapid growth and the concerns of immigrants
In Cary and Apex, Huang and Mu say they want to work on improving access to affordable housing and address a variety of issues that stem from the rapid population growth throughout Wake County.
"In my opinion, Apex is the number one best place to live," Mu said. "It's ranked one of the fastest developing towns in North Carolina and that rapid growth brings a lot of opportunities, but it also creates a lot of challenges, like traffic congestion, overcrowded schools and strained infrastructure."
She added that many essential workers, like police officers and firefighters, as well as the children of lifelong residents are increasingly priced out of Apex due to inflation, rising home prices and other economic factors. Mu expressed wanting to collaborate with a nonprofit, such as Habitat for Humanity or the Raleigh Community Land Trust, on a solution that helps residents afford buying homes.
"I saw so many voters come up to me, shake my hand and say, I wasn't interested in municipal elections before, but this year, I have to come out to vote because of you." — Apex Town Council Member Sue Mu
Huang, meanwhile, discussed the need to improve infrastructure in south Cary. She wants to expand the city's greenway system and build more sidewalks to make the city safer for pedestrians. She also said that upgrades to stormwater systems are a priority to better protect residential properties from flooding.
Huang also wants to see more recreational facilities built in town, particularly for senior citizens. There is only one senior center in Cary, located at Bond Park. She noted that the population of older adults in Cary is increasing, due to an aging population and an influx of older folks moving in from outside the area because they see the town as an ideal place to retire. In 2024, Cary voters rejected a hefty $560 million parks and recreation bond measure, which would have funded more senior community spaces. Huang said that while she supported the bond measure, she believed the package was too large and would have preferred for it to be broken down into smaller parts.
"It didn't pass, which means we got nothing. If you separate (the measure), we can get some (facilities) for people … we don't have to wait two or four or six years," Huang said. She added that she'd like to see another version of the bond measure on the ballot in the next couple years.
The two new officials are also highly concerned with immigrant safety, especially after the wave of immigration enforcement actions that swept through the Charlotte area and the Triangle. Huang said she's noticed fewer cars present when she drops her kids off at school, and heard about fewer patrons at immigrant-owned businesses.
"We have so many small business owners, especially Chinese restaurant owners, who are feeling very bad about it because their staff are not coming to work," Huang said. "When immigration enforcement was here last month, they not only felt the shortage of staff but also people don't come out for dinner. Their businesses were ruined."
Now that she's in office, Huang said she wants to do more to help residents protect their rights.
Mu wants to work on improving language access in Apex, particularly with translating the town's communications into Chinese, Hindi and potentially other Asian languages. She hopes to collaborate with community organizations to help convey messages about what is happening in town and how officials can better serve them.
"I think (lack of language access) is part of the reason why the participation in civic engagement is low, compared to English-speaking communities," Mu said. "I think it's important we include those portions of our residents. No matter (if) they are visa holders, green card holders or citizens, they are all Apex residents."
Reporting for this story took place largely before Cary Town Manager Sean Stegall resigned amid allegations of improper spending. The alleged spending took place before Huang joined the council.
