North Carolina State Senate elections, 2024
| 2024 North Carolina Senate Elections | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Primary | March 5, 2024 |
| Primary runoff | May 14, 2024 |
| General | November 5, 2024 |
| Past Election Results |
| 2022・2020・2018・2016・2014 2012・2010・2008 |
| 2024 Elections | |
|---|---|
| Choose a chamber below: | |
Elections for the North Carolina State Senate will take place in 2024. The general election is on November 5, 2024. The primary was March 5, 2024, and the primary runoff was May 14, 2024. The filing deadline was December 15, 2023.
The North Carolina State Senate is one of 85 state legislative chambers with elections in 2024. There are 99 chambers throughout the country.
Party control
| Party | As of October 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 20 | |
| Republican Party | 30 | |
| Other | 0 | |
| Vacancies | 0 | |
| Total | 50 | |
Candidates
General election
North Carolina State Senate general election 2024 |
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| Office |  Democratic |
 Republican |
Other |
| District 1 |
Robert Hanig (i) |
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| District 2 |
Norman Sanderson (i) |
Maria Cormos (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 3 |
Bob Brinson (i) |
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| District 4 |
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| District 5 |
Kandie Smith (i) |
Did not make the ballot: |
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| District 6 |
Michael Lazzara (i) |
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| District 7 |
Michael Lee (i) |
John Evans (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 8 |
William Rabon (i) |
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| District 9 |
Brent Jackson (i) |
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| District 10 |
Benton Sawrey (i) |
Christopher Sessions (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 11 |
Lisa Barnes (i) |
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| District 12 |
Jim Burgin (i) |
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| District 13 |
Lisa Grafstein (i) |
Susan Hogarth (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 14 |
Dan Blue (i) |
Angela McCarty |
Sammie Brooks (Libertarian Party) |
| District 15 |
Jay Chaudhuri (i) |
Kat McDonald (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 16 |
Gale Adcock (i) |
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| District 17 |
Sydney Batch (i) |
Patrick Bowersox (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 18 |
Brad Hessel (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 19 |
Val Applewhite (i) |
Steven Swinton (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 20 |
Natalie Murdock (i) |
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| District 21 |
Tom McInnis (i) |
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| District 22 |
Ray Ubinger (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 23 |
Graig R. Meyer (i) |
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| District 24 |
Danny Earl Britt (i) |
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| District 25 |
Amy Galey (i) |
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| District 26 |
Phil Berger (i) |
Alvin Robinson (Constitution Party) |
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| District 27 |
Michael Garrett (i) |
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| District 28 |
Gladys Robinson (i) |
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| District 29 |
Dave Craven (i) |
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| District 30 |
Steven Jarvis (i) |
Daniel Cavender (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 31 |
Teresa Hopper Prizer (Independent) (Write-in) |
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| District 32 |
Paul Lowe (i) |
Zac Lentz (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 33 |
Carl Ford (i) |
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| District 34 |
Paul Newton (i) |
Thomas B. Hill (Libertarian Party) |
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| District 35 |
Todd Johnson (i) |
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| District 36 |
Eddie Settle (i) |
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| District 37 |
Vickie Sawyer (i) |
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| District 38 |
Mujtaba Mohammed (i) |
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| District 39 |
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| District 40 |
Joyce Waddell (i) |
Jeff Scott (We the People Party) |
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| District 41 |
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| District 42 |
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| District 43 |
Brad Overcash (i) |
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| District 44 |
Did not make the ballot: |
Ted Alexander (i) |
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| District 45 |
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| District 46 |
Warren Daniel (i) |
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| District 47 |
Ralph Hise (i) |
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| District 48 |
Timothy Moffitt (i) |
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| District 49 |
Julie Mayfield (i) |
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| District 50 |
Kevin Corbin (i) |
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Primary
North Carolina State Senate primary 2024 |
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| Office | Democratic |
Republican |
Other |
| District 1 |
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| District 2 |
Did not make the ballot: |
Libertarian Party  Maria Cormos*  |
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| District 3 |
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| District 4 |
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| District 5 |
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| District 6 |
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| District 7 |
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Libertarian Party John Evans* |
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| District 8 |
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| District 9 |
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| District 10 |
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Libertarian Party Christopher Sessions* |
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| District 11 |
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| District 12 |
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| District 13 |
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Libertarian Party Susan Hogarth* |
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| District 14 |
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Libertarian Party Sammie Brooks* |
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| District 15 |
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Libertarian Party Kat McDonald* |
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| District 16 |
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The Republican primary was canceled. |
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| District 17 |
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The Republican primary was canceled. |
Libertarian Party Patrick Bowersox* |
| District 18 |
Libertarian Party Brad Hessel* |
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| District 19 |
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Libertarian Party Steven Swinton* |
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| District 20 |
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| District 21 |
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| District 22 |
The Republican primary was canceled. |
Libertarian Party Ray Ubinger* |
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| District 23 |
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| District 24 |
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| District 25 |
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| District 26 |
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| District 27 |
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| District 28 |
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The Republican primary was canceled. |
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| District 29 |
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| District 30 |
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Libertarian Party Daniel Cavender* |
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| District 31 |
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| District 32 |
Libertarian Party Zac Lentz* |
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| District 33 |
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| District 34 |
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Libertarian Party Thomas B. Hill* |
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| District 35 |
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| District 36 |
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| District 37 |
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| District 38 |
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The Republican primary was canceled. |
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| District 39 |
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The Republican primary was canceled. |
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| District 40 |
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The Republican primary was canceled. |
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| District 41 |
Robert Bruns |
The Republican primary was canceled. |
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| District 42 |
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| District 43 |
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| District 44 |
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| District 45 |
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| District 46 |
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| District 47 |
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| District 48 |
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| District 49 |
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| District 50 |
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Voting information
- See also: Voting in North Carolina
Campaign finance
- See also: Campaign finance
The section and tables below contain data from financial reports submitted to state agencies. Districts and elections are grouped in sections of 10. To view data for a district, click on the appropriate bar below to expand it. The data is gathered and made available by Transparency USA.
Incumbents who did not advance to the general election
Incumbents defeated in primaries
One incumbent lost in primaries. This was less than the decade high of four in 2022 and 2018.
| Name | Party | Office |
|---|---|---|
| Mike Woodard |  Democratic |
Senate District 22 |
Retiring incumbents
Six incumbents did not file for re-election in 2024.[1] This was less than the average of seven retirements per cycle between 2010 and 2022. Those incumbents are:
Primary election competitiveness
This section contains data on state legislative primary election competitiveness in North Carolina. These totals include data from all regularly-scheduled House and Senate elections. For more information about Ballotpedia's competitiveness analysis of state legislative elections, please click here.
Post-filing deadline analysis
The following analysis covers all state legislative districts up for election in North Carolina in 2024. Information below was calculated on Feb. 28, 2024, and may differ from information shown in the table above due to candidate replacements and withdrawals after that time.
Nineteen North Carolina state legislative incumbents faced primary challenges, representing 13% of all incumbents running for re-election. This was a decade low number and percentage of contested incumbents in North Carolina.
Of the 19 incumbents in contested primaries, eight were Democrats and 11 were Republicans.
North Carolina had 43 contested state legislative primaries 2024, a 41% decrease from 2022 and a decade low.
Of the 43 contested primaries, there were 19 for Democrats and 24 for Republicans. For Democrats, this was 10 fewer than in 2022. For Republicans, the number was down 45% from 44 in 2022.
Overall, 363 major party candidates — 193 Democrats and 170 Republicans — filed to run. All 120 House and 50 Senate seats were up for election.
Twenty-one of those seats were open, meaning no incumbents filed. This guaranteed that at least 12% of the legislature would be represented by newcomers in 2025.
Open seats
The table below shows the number and percentage of open seats in the North Carolina State Senate from 2010 to 2024.[2]
| Open Seats in North Carolina State Senate elections: 2010 - 2024 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Total seats | Open seats | Seats with incumbents running for re-election |
| 2024 | 50 | 6 (12 percent) | 44 (88 percent) |
| 2022 | 50 | 10 (20 percent) | 40 (80 percent) |
| 2020 | 50 | 11 (22 percent) | 39 (78 percent) |
| 2018 | 50 | 5 (10 percent) | 45 (90 percent) |
| 2016 | 50 | 7 (14 percent) | 43 (86 percent) |
| 2014 | 50 | 5 (10 percent) | 45 (90 percent) |
| 2012 | 50 | 11 (22 percent) | 39 (78 percent) |
| 2010 | 50 | 8 (16 percent) | 42 (84 percent) |
Legislative referrals
- See also: Legislative referral
A legislative referral, or legislatively referred ballot measure, is a ballot measure that appears on the ballot due to a vote of the state legislature. A legislative referral can be a constitutional amendment, state statute, or bond issue.
As of the 2024 election, a 60% vote is required during one legislative session for the General Assembly of North Carolina to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 72 votes in the North Carolina House of Representatives and 30 votes in the North Carolina State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.
Heading into the 2024 election, Republicans hold a 29-20 majority in the Senate and a 72-48 majority in the House. Democrats would need to win 10 Senate seats and 24 House seats to be able to pass legislative referrals without Republican votes. Republicans would need one Senate seat to have the same ability.
Process to become a candidate
For partisan candidates
See statutes: Chapter 163, Article 10, Section 106 of the North Carolina General Statutes
A partisan candidate must be registered as an affiliate of the party with which he or she intends to campaign. A partisan candidate must also do the following:[3][3]
- file a notice of candidacy with the appropriate board of elections (state or county-level)
- file a felony conviction disclosure form
- provide for payment of required filing fees
Filing fees for primary elections are established by Chapter 163, Article 10, Section 107, of the North Carolina General Statutes. Filing fees formulas are summarized in the table below.[4]
| Filing fees | |
|---|---|
| Office | How the fee is determined |
| Governor | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| Lieutenant governor | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| State executive offices | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| United States Senator | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| United States Representative | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| State senator | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| State representative | 1% of the office's annual salary |
For independent candidates
See statutes: Chapter 163, Article 11, Section 122 of the North Carolina General Statutes
An unaffiliated candidate must file the same forms and pay the same filing fees as partisan candidates. In addition, the candidate must petition to appear on the ballot. Signature requirements are as follows (additional petition requirements are discussed below).[5][6]
| Signature requirements for independent candidates | |
|---|---|
| Office | Signature requirement formula |
| Governor, United States Senator, and other statewide offices | 1.5% of the total number of voters who voted in the most recent general election for governor (must include at least 200 signatures from each of three congressional districts) |
| United States Representative; state House and state Senate seats for districts that cover more than one county | 1.5% of the total number of registered voters in the district as of January 1 of the election year |
| State legislative seats | 4% of the total number of registered voters in the district as of January 1 of the election year |
For write-in candidates
See statutes: Chapter 163, Article 11, Section 123 of the North Carolina General Statutes
To be certified, a write-in candidate must submit a declaration of intent and petition. Signature requirements are as follows (additional petition requirements are discussed below).[7]
| Signature requirements for write-in candidates | |
|---|---|
| Office | Required number of signatures |
| Governor, United States Senator, and other statewide offices | 500 |
| United States Representative; state house and state senate seats for districts that cover more than one county | 250 |
| State house and state senate seats for districts that lie within one county | If there are 5,000 or more registered voters in the district, 100 signatures; if fewer than 5,000, 1% of the number of registered voters |
Write-in candidates do not have to pay filing fees.[8]
Qualifications
Article 2, Section 6 of the North Carolina Constitution states: Each Senator, at the time of his election, shall be not less than 25 years of age, shall be a qualified voter of the State, and shall have resided in the State as a citizen for two years and in the district for which he is chosen for one year immediately preceding his election.
Salaries and per diem
- See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries
| State legislative salaries, 2024[9] | |
|---|---|
| Salary | Per diem |
| $13,951/year | $104/day |
When sworn in
North Carolina legislators assume office on January 1 the year after their election.[10]
North Carolina political history
Historic Senate control
Republicans won control of the North Carolina State Senate in 2010. In 2022, they won a 30-20 majority.
The table below shows the partisan history of the North Carolina Senate following every general election from 1992 to 2022. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.
North Carolina State Senate election results: 1992-2022
| Year | '92 | '94 | '96 | '98 | '00 | '02 | '04 | '06 | '08 | '10 | '12 | '14 | '16 | '18 | '20 | '22 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democrats | 39 | 26 | 30 | 35 | 35 | 28 | 29 | 31 | 30 | 19 | 18 | 16 | 15 | 21 | 22 | 20 |
| Republicans | 11 | 24 | 20 | 15 | 15 | 22 | 21 | 19 | 20 | 31 | 32 | 34 | 35 | 29 | 28 | 30 |
Trifectas
A state government trifecta is a term that describes single-party government, when one political party holds the governor's office and has majorities in both chambers of the legislature in a state government.
North Carolina Party Control: 1992-2024
Fourteen years of Democratic trifectas • Four years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
| Senate | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
Presidential politics in North Carolina
2020
- See also: Presidential election, 2020
Presidential election in North Carolina, 2020
Candidate/Running mate |
% |
Popular votes |
Electoral votes |
||
| ✔ |
 
| Donald Trump/Mike Pence (R) |
49.9
|
2,758,775 | 15 |
 
| Joe Biden/Kamala D. Harris (D) |
48.6
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2,684,292 | 0 | |
 
| Jo Jorgensen/Spike Cohen (L) |
0.9
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48,678 | 0 | |
 
| Howie Hawkins/Angela Nicole Walker (G) |
0.2
|
12,195 | 0 | |
 
| Don Blankenship/William Mohr (Constitution Party) |
0.1
|
7,549 | 0 | |
 | Jade Simmons (no running mate) (Independent) (Write-in) |
0.0
|
119 | 0 | |
| Other write-in votes |
0.2
|
13,196 | 0 | ||
 |
Total votes: 5,524,804 |
2016
- See also: Presidential election, 2016
| U.S. presidential election, North Carolina, 2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Electoral votes | |
| Democratic | Hillary Clinton/Tim Kaine | 46.2% | 2,189,316 | 0 | |
| Republican | Donald Trump/Mike Pence |
49.8% | 2,362,631 | 15 | |
| Libertarian | Gary Johnson/Bill Weld | 2.7% | 130,126 | 0 | |
| - | Write-in votes | 1.3% | 59,491 | 0 | |
| Total Votes | 4,741,564 | 15 | |||
| Election results via: North Carolina State Board of Elections | |||||
North Carolina presidential election results (1900-2020)
- 18 Democratic wins
- 13 Republican wins
| Year | 1900 | 1904 | 1908 | 1912 | 1916 | 1920 | 1924 | 1928 | 1932 | 1936 | 1940 | 1944 | 1948 | 1952 | 1956 | 1960 | 1964 | 1968 | 1972 | 1976 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1996 | 2000 | 2004 | 2008 | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winning Party | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | R | R | R |
Redistricting following the 2020 census
On October 25, 2023, the North Carolina General Assembly adopted new legislative district boundaries.[11] The legislation adopting the new Senate districts passed the State Senate by a vote of 28-17 and the State House by a vote of 63-40.[12] The legislation adopting the new House districts passed the State Senate by a vote of 27-17 and the State House by a vote of 62-44.[13] All four votes were strictly along party lines with all votes in favor by Republicans and all votes against by Democrats.[14][15][16][17] WUNC's Rusty Jacobs wrote that Catawba College Prof. Michael "Bitzer said Republicans have drawn maps that have a strong chance of preserving their veto-proof super majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. Bitzer noted that constitutional provisions, like requiring legislators to keep counties whole when drawing state legislative districts, make it more difficult for lawmakers to gerrymander these maps more aggressively."[18]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Ballotpedia defines an incumbent as retiring if the incumbent did not file for office or filed for office but withdrew, was disqualified, or otherwise left a race in a manner other than losing the primary, primary runoff, or convention. If an incumbent runs as a write-in candidate, Ballotpedia does not consider them to be retiring. If an incumbent runs in the same chamber for a different seat, Ballotpedia does not consider them to be retiring.
- ↑ Ballotpedia defines a seat as open if the incumbent did not file to run for re-election or filed but withdrew and did not appear on any ballot for his or her seat. If the incumbent withdrew from or did not participate in the primary but later chose to seek re-election to his or her seat as a third party or independent candidate, the seat would not be counted as open. If the incumbent retired or ran for a different seat in the same chamber, his or her original seat would be counted as open unless another incumbent from the same chamber filed to run for that seat, in which case it would not be counted as open due to the presence of an incumbent.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 North Carolina General Statutes, "Chapter 163, Article 10, Section 106," accessed December 9, 2013
- ↑ North Carolina General Statutes, "Chapter 163, Article 10, Section 107," accessed December 9, 2013
- ↑ North Carolina General Statutes, "Chapter 163, Article 11, Section 122," accessed December 9, 2013
- ↑ General Assembly of North Carolina, "Senate Bill 656," accessed October 18, 2017
- ↑ North Carolina General Statutes, "Chapter 163, Article 11, Section 123," accessed December 9, 2013
- ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Fact Sheet: Write-in Candidates 2014 Election," accessed December 9, 2013
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2024 Legislator Compensation," August 21, 2024
- ↑ North Carolina Constitution, "Article II, Section 9," accessed February 12, 2021
- ↑ The Carolina Journal, "New state House, Senate, and congressional maps finalized," October 25, 2023
- ↑ North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Bill 758 / SL 2023-146," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑ North Caroliina General Assembly, "House Bill 898 / SL 2023-149," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑ North Carolina General Assembly, "House Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #614," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑ North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #499," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑ North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #504," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑ North Caroliina General Assembly, "House Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #604," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑ WUNC, "New district maps show signs of GOP partisan gerrymandering," October 24, 2023
