CARRBORO, N.C. – Orange County citizens will celebrate the inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama with a community bash in Carrboro on Sunday, Jan. 18.  Festivities will include Martin Luther King-themed performances by students and community members, music by six bands on two stages, discounts at local restaurants for inaugural celebrants and a dance party at Southern Rail restaurant.

What:  Inaugural Celebration in Carrboro
When:  Sunday January 18, 2009, 5 p.m. – 2 a.m.
Where: Century Center:  MLK Performances, Music; 5 p.m. -10 p.m.
Southern Rail: Live Music and Dance Party; 8 p.m. – 2 a.m.

All evening: local restaurants giving discounts for inaugural celebration participants

Cost: Century Center Festivities are free.

Inaugural All Access Pass – $10 or donation of canned goods.  Pass required for access to restaurant discounts and entry to the Dance Party at Southern Rail

The event is organized by Orange County Campaign for Change, which is inviting all Orange County citizens to usher in a new era in our nation’s history at this community gathering and celebration.

Gubernatorial candidate Pat McCrory will be in the NBC17 viewing area this weekend.
On Saturday at 10 a.m. he will appear in the Benson Mule Parade.

At noon Sunday, McCrory will attend a fundraiser in Cary before attending a reception in Chapel Hill at 2 p.m. The reception is hosted by the Republican Women’s Club.

Candidate Bev Perdue is not scheduled to be in the area this weekend. On Sunday she will appear in Moorehead City for a fundraiser.

RALEIGH, N.C. – Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards and his wife, Elizabeth, have backed out of a joint appearance at Salem State College in Massachusetts.

That is the second joint event the Edwardses have altered since John Edwards admitted to an extramarital affair last month. The two were also scheduled to speak next week at Hofstra University in New York, but she has dropped from that event.

Salem State College spokeswoman Karen Cady said Tuesday that the couple canceled their Sept. 23 appearance, initially billed as a “conversation” with the two.
 
John Edwards is still scheduled to speak at the University of Illinois in October, and Elizabeth Edwards is scheduled for an event at Cooper University Hospital at the end of September.

RALEIGH, N.C. –The 2,000+ tickets available for Tuesday’s Barack Obama event sold out Monday.

Campaign officials said the tickets were gone within two hours. Tickets were available at the campaign offices in Raleigh and Cary.

Obama will discuss his plan to put the economy back on track during his appearance Tuesday at the state fairgrounds.