A Mebane city council member who's running for the state Legislature is apologizing after she was charged with driving while impaired.

Highway Patrol troopers stopped Democrat Patty Philipps early Saturday on Interstate 40 in Burlington. Troopers say she had a .15 percent blood alcohol level. The legal limit in North Carolina is .08 percent.

Philipps is running for a state House seat against Republican candidate Steve Ross. She says she made a serious mistake, and she apologized to her family, friends and the community.