TL/DR –
North Carolina voters cast ballots in favor of Donald Trump, but elected several Democrats in high-profile state positions, revealing the state’s complicated political landscape. Democrats filled key roles, including Josh Stein as governor, Jeff Jackson as attorney general, and Mo Green as public school superintendent, while Trump secured a larger victory margin over Kamala Harris than his win over Joe Biden in 2020. The Democratic Party also broke the Republican supermajority in the North Carolina House by a single seat, giving the new Democratic governor veto leverage against further restrictive legislation.
Trump secures North Carolina but the state rejects extreme-right candidates
North Carolina elected all Democrat nominees in the prominent council of state races, including Josh Stein as governor, Jeff Jackson as attorney general, and Mo Green as public school superintendent. However, it also voted in favor of Donald Trump, highlighting the state’s unpredictable political leanings.
The citizens of North Carolina decided against having Mark Robinson as governor, Michele Morrow as the head of public schools, and Dan Bishop as attorney general. All of these candidates held controversial views that didn’t resonate with the voters.
The Democrat party also managed to break the Republican supermajority in the NC House, granting Stein veto leverage against further legislative proposals.
Contrastingly, the electorate favored Trump over Vice President Kamala Harris by more than 3 percentage points, an increase from Trump’s 2020 margin over Joe Biden.
Key election results in North Carolina
Trump wins over Harris
In spite of Harris’ immense popularity in North Carolina, Trump led by over 191,000 votes. New voter registrations, primarily targeted by Democrats, seemed to have voted in Trump’s favor instead.
Governor: Stein defeats Robinson
Stein won the governor race with over 3 million votes, around 200,000 more than what Trump garnered. His victory, by nearly 15 percentage points, was one of the most decisive in the state’s history.
Attorney General: Jackson overcomes Greg Bishop
Jackson defeated his Congressional colleague by around 150,000 votes. Bishop’s anti-abortion, anti-LGBTQ views were not endorsed by the voters.
Superintendent of Public Instruction: Green triumphs over Morrow
Green, a former superintendent of Guilford County Schools, won by over 2 percentage points. He committed to championing public education and highlighted the ongoing task of improving North Carolina’s public schools. Learn more here.
Democrats halt Republican supermajority in the NC House
Democrats succeeded in flipping enough seats in the state House to end the Republicans’ veto-proof supermajority in the legislature. This change grants Stein significant leverage to block additional abortion restrictions or expansions of the state’s private school voucher program.
NC Supreme Court: Race remains undecided
Democratic Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs trails her Republican opponent Jefferson Griffin by less than 10,000 votes.
Other notable results
- Democratic Congressman Don Davis defeated Republican Laurie Buckhout by over 5,000 votes.
- Democrat Rachel Hunt overcame Republican Hal Weatherman in the lieutenant governor race by nearly 2 percentage points.
- Democratic incumbent Elaine Marshall retained her position as the secretary of state against Republican Chad Brown.
- Republicans won the offices of state auditor, treasurer, and commissioners of labor, agriculture, and insurance.
—
Read More US News; North Carolina News