While eyes countywide may be focused on the undecided race for the Wake County school board, voters in Wendell and Knightdale find themselves with an interesting choice on Nov. 8.

In both towns, there are competitive races for mayor.

In Knightdale, incumbent Russell Killen faces a challenge from businessman and community volunteer Jun Lee. Killen has proven to be an effective leader in Knightdale during the past four years, but Lee, who runs a martial arts center, has been an immensely popular figure in Knightdale and he will, no doubt, draw votes because of his relationships with the families in the community.

Based on comments made at Tuesday night's mayoral forum, Killen and Lee are miles apart on fiscal policy and that offers a stark contrast for voters. Killen praised what he calls the conservative fiscal policy the town has followed during the years. That policy, he contends, has kept Knightdale from suffering badly during the recession.

Lee worries that the town has too much debt and needs to stop spending borrowed money. He also called for what he termed "progressive revenue generation."

Since both men pledged their opposition to property tax increases, it's uncertain exactly what revenue streams Lee would like to grow, but you have to figure someone would have to pay that cost. Killen sees the borrowing the town has done as a good investment in the town's infrastructure and he points out that the town's bond rating - a measure of its creditworthiness - is strong.

In Wendell, incumbent Harold Broadwell faces a challenge from his immediate predecessor, Tim Hinnant.

Broadwell has proven to be a strong ambassador for the town, working through the system to bring services back to Wendell. But he has been hamstrung by a town board that was unwilling to listen to his points of view. The two biggest burrs in Broadwell's saddle are set to go off the town board following the election after they chose not to run for re-election. It would, frankly, be interesting to see what Broadwell could accomplish working with a board that considers his opinion in its deliberations.

Hinnant, who did not run for re-election in 2007, was never one to shy away from a fight, either. As his term wound down, Hinnant called for the resignation of a planning board member who, in Hinnant's opinion, had violated ethics rules because of his involvement with a rezoning request. Though Hinnant enjoyed the support of his board, he was never as visible in the community as Broadwell has been. He proved himself to be an attentive mayor who studied matters that came before the board.

The races are likely to be competitive and could boost voter turnout, although that number is still likely to be low. Whichever choice you make on Election Day, we simply ask that you consider your vote carefully.