Dan Besse

Daniel Vaughn (Dan) Besse (born December 28, 1954) is a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill School of Law (1980), an attorney, and, since 2001, a City Councilman in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He was one of four Democratic candidates in the 2008 Lt. Governor Election for the seat vacated by Beverly Perdue, but came in third place among four candidates in the primary, which was won by Walter Dalton. Besse is currently the 2018 Democratic nominee for North Carolina House District 75 in Forsyth County.
In the 2008 campaign, Besse received the endorsement of the Progressive Democrats of North Carolina and the Conservation Council of North Carolina.
In the 2018 NC House campaign, Besse has been endorsed by Equality NC, a pro-LGBT rights organization. He has been named a "Gun Sense Candidate" by the North Carolina chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a group supporting gun safety laws and educational efforts.
Political and Non-profit experience
Besse chairs the board of trustees of PART (Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation), the Piedmont Triad region's public transit agency. He is vice chair of the Winston-Salem Urban Area Transportation Advisory Committee, which approves plans and project funding for the Winston-Salem MPO (Metropolitan Planning Organization). He is a North Carolina representative to the National League of Cities' Transportation Infrastructure and Services Committee.
Besse served on the board of directors of the Piedmont Triad Partnership, a leading regional development organization, which brought $15 million in federal grant money to the Piedmont Triad region for workforce development. He was appointed to the N.C. Environmental Management Commission (1993-2005) by Governor Jim Hunt and he also served on the N.C. Coastal Resources Commission (1985-1993, Chair 1985-1990), the N.C. Sedimentation Control Commission (1994-2002), and the N.C. Emergency Response Commission (1987-1992).
Besse previously chaired the Stakeholders Committee of the Piedmont Triad Early Action Compact, a regional clean air coalition, and a member of the N.C. Climate Action Plan Advisory Group since 2006.
Besse has also served as adjunct or visiting faculty at North Carolina State University, Winston-Salem State University, and Duke University, as well as Guilford College, and Forsyth Technical Community College.

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu