Charlotte City Council candidate to suspend campaign, endorse Tiawana Brown
A Charlotte City Council candidate suspended his campaign Tuesday after failing to secure the endorsement of the Black Political Caucus of Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
District 3 candidate Montravias King made the announcement during a candidate event hosted by the Sarah Stevenson Tuesday Forum. King said he’s now throwing his support behind incumbent Tiawana Brown, who is serving her first term and faces felony fraud charges. Brown has not been convicted of a crime associated with the most recent charges.
“I know for a fact that the BPC has a good pulse on District 3, and we didn’t do as well as we thought we were going to do,” King said. “I believe in my heart of hearts that there is only one person in this race that truly loves and cares about the people, and because of that, not only am I suspending my race, but I am fully endorsing current councilwoman Tiawana Brown.”
The Black Political Caucus has not yet announced its endorsements publicly, but candidate Joi Mayo issued a news release Tuesday morning saying she earned the group’s endorsement. Mayo is a former Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools teacher and a neighborhood leader who founded Transforming Nations Ford, a community development nonprofit.
The BPC holds significant weight in local elections and has a history of endorsing candidates who go on to win. In the 2023 primary election, all of its endorsees won their respective city council contests, though some were unsuccessful in the general election.
With King out of the race, that leaves Brown, Mayo and former District 3 councilman Warren Turner in the running for the Democratic primary. The winner will face Republican candidate James Bowers in the November general election. Unaffiliated candidate Robin Emmons is also campaigning.
King’s name , however, will still appear on the primary ballot. Mecklenburg County Board of Elections spokesperson Kristin Mavromatis said staff already mailed 1,500 ballots.
“He remains on the ballot and all votes will be counted,” Mavromatis said.
Why did Montravias King suspend his campaign?
King, a Charlotte resident of six years, knew he faced an uphill battle to secure local name recognition when he entered the race. He’s no newcomer to politics, though.
In 2013, King won a seat on the Elizabeth City Council while still attending school at Elizabeth City State University. Republicans challenged his candidacy, arguing students could not use their college address to run for elected office. The State Board of Elections ruled in King’s favor.
Charlotte City Council would have marked his return to elected office for the first time in a decade.
“My main challenge the entire time was relationships,” King told The Charlotte Observer. “That’s where I fell short at, but councilwoman Brown, she still has a really, really good support network across the district.”
King plans to stay involved in his community and look for other opportunities to serve. Brown’s indictment had no impact on his endorsement decision, King said.
“She has a right to due process, and she’s entitled to have her day in court,” King said.
Mayo respected King’s decision but does not believe it will sway the results of the election, she said.
Brown did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
Charlotte City Council District 3 candidates tiptoe around controversy
Candidates avoided talk about scandals surrounding two of three remaining Democratic hopefuls during Tuesday’s forum. Instead, they highlighted their own records of community involvement.
Turner represented District 3 for eight years, during which time he chaired a committee on public safety and served as vice chair of a committee on transportation. He said his district is now “falling back” on crime and unemployment.
Turner was voted out of office in 2011 after a sexual harassment scandal in which an outside investigation determined he had made inappropriate comments to an employee. This campaign is his second attempt at reclaiming his former seat and a rematch with Brown, whom he competed against in 2023 when the seat was open.
Brown billed herself as “the people’s champ” and “the rookie” on City Council who does not take part in cliques that impede effective governance.
Brown was indicted this spring alongside her two adult daughters on charges of wire fraud conspiracy and wire fraud used to falsely obtain pandemic relief loans. The indictment alleges they spent loan money on personal expenses, including a birthday party for Brown.
In a previous statement, Brown said the charges were “a political attack” intended to interfere with her reelection campaign.
Warren’s controversy did not come up during Tuesday’s forum. Only one question referenced Brown’s indictment, and it was directed at her two opponents: Would they be in the race if not for her charges? Both said yes, and they do not believe in attacks.
“That’s not the type of race I’m gonna run. I’m going to focus on the residents of District 3, listening to them,” Mayo told the Observer. “I think everything else is a distraction.”
Brown disagreed, saying she does not believe her opponents would otherwise be in the race.
“Not only are they running against me, but also some people in city government is running against me. But when you stand, and when you fight, you win,” Brown said. “And that’s what you’ll see me doing. Fighting.”
But it was Mayo who faced the most scrutiny during the forum, with multiple pointed questions directed her way from the audience. Brown took a moment to call out Mayo, too, in a rare instance of direct confrontation between the candidates, suggesting Mayo misled her on her intention to run for office.
“I think the key endorsements that I have received in the past couple of days really speak to the work that I’ve done,” Mayo said. “People may be intimidated by that.”
Charlotte Observer reporter Mary Ramsey contributed reporting.
This story was originally published August 12, 2025 at 9:24 AM.
