District Attorney candidate Lewis Cheek has seen his name on ballots before, but this time is a little different.

A longtime Durham lawyer and Durham County Commissioner, Cheek has said he will decline the office if elected district attorney, compelling Gov. Mike Easley to appoint a replacement.

"What happened was some people came to me in June and asked me to consider the possibility of running," Cheek said.

He accepted at first, but had concerns about the impact his absence would have on his law firm, Hedrick, Murray & Cheek.

"My sudden exit could make problems for the law firm and the people who work there," Cheek explained.

Cheek said his supporters Dan Hill, Jackie Brown, Ed Pope and Roland Leary then asked him to authorize a petition to put his name on the ballot after the May primaries.

"[The petition] was successful, but three weeks later, it became clear to me I just really wouldn't be able to accept the position, and I made an announcement that I would not campaign," Cheek said.

Cheek is a veteran of both law and politics in Durham. A city native, Cheek spent his undergraduate years at Wake Forest and received his law degree there in 1976. He returned to Durham, where he has practiced law-primarily civil trial law-since 1976.

He was elected to City Council in 1999 and served until 2003. Cheek decided not to run for a second term because he was organizing the law firm with which he currently works.

In 2004, Cheek was asked to run for the Durham Board of County Commissioners.

"At the time, there was tension among various members of the board and a lot of folks thought it was creating distractions, preventing the county from doing business as it should. A lot of bickering was going on," Cheek said about why he agreed to reenter politics.

As one of five county commissioners, Cheek oversees a variety of county services, including funding for schools and, to a smaller extent, social services.

Although Cheek will not serve as district attorney if elected, his supporters are still pushing for a victory with the "Recall Nifong-Vote Cheek" campaign.

Hill, who served on City Council with Cheek, strongly supports him over incumbent District Attorney Mike Nifong.

"I voted for Nifong in early May in the primary because I thought he had some evidence I had not yet seen that he would be coming forth with, but the evidence turned in after the election appeared to prove rape did not occur," said Hill, referring to the current rape charges against three members of the 2005-2006 men's lacrosse team.

"[Nifong's] statements in the first eight days of the Duke lacrosse scandal really generated a local problem-a local issue became national entertainment," Hill said.

Cheek's other opponent is Steve Monks, who is running as a write-in candidate. Hill said Monks' candidacy would have a negative effect on Cheek's chances.

"Monks cannot win. He cannot win as a write-in candidate," Hill said.