Charles Meeker

Charles Carpenter Meeker (born July 27, 1950) is the former mayor of Raleigh, North Carolina, United States and a member of the Democratic Party. He was first elected in 2001 over Republican Paul Coble, and reelected for a fifth two-year term in 2009. A fifth term tied Meeker with Avery C. Upchurch as Raleigh's longest-serving mayor.
He is the son of Leonard Meeker, who served as United States Ambassador to Romania from 1969 to 1973.

Meeker is a Raleigh-based lawyer whose firm focuses on local government issues, including public transportation and development. In his five terms as mayor and during previous service on the Raleigh City Council (1985–89 and 1991–95), Meeker, living and raising his family in Boylan Heights, notably advocated downtown redevelopment and the creation of a light rail system connecting Raleigh to Durham, Research Triangle Park, and Chapel Hill under the auspices of the Triangle Transit Authority. He also successfully pushed for the construction of a new downtown convention center and hotel, as well as the reconstruction of Fayetteville Street, a $9.33 million project to convert the pedestrian mall to an urban "main street" with outdoor dining, art galleries, and open spaces.

Meeker was a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition, a bi-partisan group with a stated goal of "making the public safer by getting illegal guns off the streets." The Coalition was co-chaired by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Meeker announced in April 2011 that he would not run for a sixth term.

He has announced plans to run for North Carolina Commissioner of Labor in the 2016 election.

Charles Meeker received his BA in 1972 from Yale University and in 1975 received his JD from Columbia University.

Meeker became a member of the North Carolina bar in 1975 and a member of the District of Columbia bar in 1984.