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The November election for mayor of Norwood features a former town council member and mayor running against current mayor Harold Thompson.

Linda Campbell, who served a five-year term on the town’s council from 2013-18, including two years as mayor pro tem, went to Raleigh in 2018 along with others to file changes to the town’s charter. The changes included giving voting rights to the mayor along with other things which were outdated, she said. (Editor’s Note: the previous paragraph was edited after the print edition with the clarification of Campbell being named mayor pro tem. She was not elected as mayor.)

Campbell said she believed it did not seem right for the mayor to be on the council but not have a vote on matters. Moving forward, she added, the mayor would be able to break tiebreakers should the four other council members be split on a motion.

In her time on the council and as mayor, Campbell said the town adequately funded the police department while also revamping the maintenance department.

The council also bought and turned around some buildings while signing a contract with Central Rural VFD which saved the town approximately $65,000. Other projects initially started by the council when she served came to fruition after she left, she added.

Moving forward, she said there are numerous projects she wants to see completed which have not been by the current mayor and administration.

Those projects include the water program on Brickyard Road to give residents more water pressure. Campbell said money was in the budget, but the project “just ceased.”

Campbell said she has issues with the downtown farmers market area, saying leaks from the side of the building taken down are going into the two adjoining buildings.

“I have visions of what to do with the farmers market,” she said.

Trash pickup has become stricter, Campbell said.

“They are not serving the people for their tax dollars,” she said. “I want people to know what they are getting for their tax dollars…what other services are we getting?”

Campbell said she was big on customer service by the town hall for residents, adding the office is closed on Wednesday, which is a complaint for people when they are paid that day and unable to do business with the town.

“I’m a servant. I’ve worked in social work all my life…I get out, get my boots dirty and work. It’s not about a title for me. I don’t care about the title, but I want to be in a position that I can speak for, make decisions for and stand up for the citizens of Norwood,” Campbell said.

She works full-time at South Stanly Middle School, teaching North Carolina and United States history.

“This is my passion, my dream job, to teach government,” she said.

Her vision for the town and the council is for the council’s members to be in more agreement with each other and have a common vision of making things prosper in town.

“Norwood has been stagnant for so long,” she said. “There are people in Norwood that don’t want to see it grow, that don’t want to see it change. But changes are inevitable…I would work with a board to bring economic growth.”