ABOUT
MELINDA

Melinda Bales recently served as mayor for the Town of Huntersville. She was first elected in 2011 to the Huntersville Board of Commissioners. Mayor Bales has spent her time in elected office working on economic development/workforce development issues, transportation needs and most recently affordable housing. She recently served on the North Carolina League of Municipalities Board of Directors and co-chaired the NCLM Legislative Policy Committee,  Centralina Economic Development District Board of Directors, Centralina Connect Beyond Advancing the Plan Committee, Metropolitan Transit Commission, and the Lake Norman Economic Development Board of Directors. She currently serves as co-chair of the Lake Norman Education Collaborative which is the educational arm of the Lake Norman Chamber of Commerce. 

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Melinda was born and raised in Johnson City, TN and attended East Tennessee State University as a business major. In 1991, she married the love of her life and has been married to John William for 32 years. She is the proud mother of two sons, Joshua and Jonathan. Melinda spent the first three years of her marriage as a military spouse in Naples, Italy, and her husband, John, is a military veteran of the U.S. Navy. The experience of living abroad shaped the way she views and loves her country today.

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While in Newport News, VA, Melinda worked as a trainer and quality manager for a Fortune 50 company. However, when she and her husband relocated to North Carolina, they made the decision that Melinda would stay home to raise and care for their two boys. From there, she sought out opportunities to improve education for her children, as well as children throughout the Huntersville community.

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Melinda previously served as the Women’s Ministry lay director at Christ Community Church for six years. When her children began public school, she became involved at Torrence Creek Elementary – first as a room parent, then as membership chair of the PTA, and finally as PTA President. Melinda was a vocal advocate to end overcrowding at Torrence Creek Elementary.

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While staying abreast of issues pertaining to the local schools, she became interested in local government and looked for ways to get involved. In 2009, she was appointed by the town board to the Huntersville Greenway, Bikeway and Trails Commission, and in 2011, became the Commission’s chairperson.

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Melinda has always believed that quality communities don’t just happen and that effective and responsible leadership is needed to bring quality of life to all citizens. Melinda will bring that same level of sensible and responsible leadership to Raleigh and work to ensure that all North Carolinians have an opportunity to live their best lives.