Steve Monks
Monks, 45, is an attorney and former write-in candidate for district attorney. He's part of the group of three conservatives hoping to sweep the coming election on pledges to reduce crime and improve the way services are provided. He is a former chairman of the Durham County Republican Party.

Joe Williams
Williams, 66, who runs a small construction company, is making his eighth bid for City Council. He has never been elected. He wants to reach out to inner-city youths to keep them from criminal behavior.

David Harris
Harris, 58, a software engineer at Nortel, has been a leader in Partners Against Crime, the Inter-Neighborhood Council and other grassroots groups for years. He wants to improve communication between city leaders and staff and residents. Harris was endorsed by the Durham People's Alliance.

Eugene Brown
Brown, 63, president of Distinctive Properties Real Estate, is seeking a second term on the City Council. He holds city staff to high standards and wants, among other things, to see a more streamlined development approval process. Brown has been endorsed by the Durham People's Alliance, the Friends of Durham and the N.C. Sheriff Police Alliance.

Melodie Parrish
Parrish, 59, is chairwoman of the Durham County Republican Party and part of the conservative bloc also focusing on crime and better government. A retired educator, she is making her first City Council run.

Farad Ali
Ali, 40, is making his first run for City Council. He is the vice president of the N.C. Minority Business Development Center, which helps minority entrepreneurs expand their businesses. His platform focuses on spreading publicly funded economic development efforts throughout the city. He has been endorsed by the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People.

Victoria Peterson
Peterson, 53, who runs the nonprofit organization Triangle Citizens Rebuilding Communities, has run for state and city offices several times but has never won. She's a fixture at City Council meetings, often talking about the need for Durham to spend money to prop up local businesses that hire local residents, rather than using incentives to lure outside companies. She was endorsed by the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People.

Laney Funderburk
Funderburk, 68, is part of a three-person conservative bloc running for City Council. He was chief of staff to Republican Gov. James Holshouser in the 1970s, and went on to serve for many years as head of alumni relations at Duke University. He's running on a platform geared toward reducing crime and making government more efficient. Endorsed by the Friends of Durham and the N.C. Sheriff Police Alliance. This is his first run for City Council.

Diane Catotti
Catotti, 46, a health policy consultant, is seeking a second term on City Council. Affordable housing and helping struggling neighborhoods are her key issues. Like Brown, she has been endorsed by the Durham People's Alliance, of which she used to be president, Friends of Durham and the N.C. Sheriff Police Alliance. 

David Thompson Jr.
Thompson Jr., 35, is a newcomer to politics. He works as a BMW technician. He also spent eight years in the military, three years on active duty in the Army and the rest of the time in the Reserves and National Guard.