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Ava Edwards
Ava Edwards (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. Senate to represent North Carolina. She did not appear on the ballot for the Democratic primary on May 17, 2022.
Edwards completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2021. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Edwards attended the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine and earned a doctor of pharmacy from the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy in 2008. She was a Melendy Scholarship Recipient and Pre-Doctoral Clinical and Translational Research Program Fellowship Recipient. She created The Orphan Products And Development Database at the FDA through The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education in 2008. She was also a recipient of the Drug Information Association Scholarship in 2010. She won the teacher of the year award from the College of Pharmacy at the University of Minnesota College in 2011. Her career experience includes working as a pharmacist.[1]
Edwards has been affiliated with the following organizations:[1]
- National Democratic Party
- Hispanic League
- American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
- Bold Progressive
- No Kid Hungry
- UNICEF
- Emily's List
- World Beyond War
- ACLU Guardian of Liberty
Elections
2022
See also: United States Senate election in North Carolina, 2022
General election
General election for U.S. Senate North Carolina
Ted Budd defeated Cheri Beasley, Shannon Bray, Matthew Hoh, and Michelle Lewis in the general election for U.S. Senate North Carolina on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Ted Budd (R) | 50.5 | 1,905,786 |
 | Cheri Beasley (D) | 47.3 | 1,784,049 | |
 | Shannon Bray (L)  | 1.4 | 51,640 | |
 | Matthew Hoh (G) | 0.8 | 29,934 | |
 | Michelle Lewis (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 137 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 2,378 | ||
| Total votes: 3,773,924 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Michele Parks (Independent)
- Marc White (Independent)
- Charles Roberson (Independent)
- Susan Gaddy (Independent)
- Brenda Rodriguez (Independent)
- Hayden Boyette (Independent)
- Barry Caulder (Independent)
- Kimrey Rhinehardt (Independent)
- Adrien Meadows (Independent)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. Senate North Carolina
The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate North Carolina on May 17, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Cheri Beasley | 81.1 | 501,766 |
 | James Carr Jr. | 3.5 | 21,903 | |
 | Alyssia Hammond | 3.4 | 21,005 | |
 | Marcus Williams | 2.8 | 17,446 | |
 | Constance Johnson | 2.0 | 12,500 | |
 | Everette Newton | 1.6 | 10,043 | |
 | Chrelle Booker | 1.6 | 9,937 | |
 | Brendan K. Maginnis | 1.1 | 7,044 | |
 | Robert Colon | 1.1 | 6,904 | |
 | Greg Antoine | 0.8 | 5,179 | |
 | Tobias LaGrone | 0.8 | 5,048 | |
| Total votes: 618,775 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Jenna Hamrick (D)
- Richard Watkins (D)
- Keith Davenport (D)
- Erica Smith (D)
- Jeff Jackson (D)
- Ava Edwards (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. Senate North Carolina
The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate North Carolina on May 17, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Ted Budd | 58.6 | 448,128 |
 | Pat McCrory | 24.6 | 188,135 | |
 | Mark Walker | 9.2 | 70,486 | |
 | Marjorie K. Eastman | 2.9 | 22,535 | |
| David Flaherty | 1.0 | 7,265 | ||
 | Kenneth Harper Jr. | 0.9 | 7,129 | |
 | Jennifer Banwart | 0.4 | 3,088 | |
| Charles Moss | 0.4 | 2,920 | ||
 | Leonard L. Bryant | 0.4 | 2,906 | |
 | Benjamin Griffiths | 0.4 | 2,870 | |
 | Debora Tshiovo | 0.4 | 2,741 | |
 | Lee Brian | 0.3 | 2,232 | |
 | Lichia Sibhatu | 0.3 | 2,191 | |
| Drew Bulecza | 0.3 | 2,022 | ||
| Total votes: 764,648 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Rene Borghese (R)
- James Gaghan (R)
- Carlton Ellerby (R)
- Marty Cooke (R)
- Jon Warren (R)
- Len McBride (R)
Libertarian primary election
The Libertarian primary election was canceled. Shannon Bray advanced from the Libertarian primary for U.S. Senate North Carolina.
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Ava Edwards completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2021. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Edwards' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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UMN Medical School Alumni Member, an honor graduate with a Doctor of Pharmacy. Awarded of Melendy Scholarship; Pre-Doctoral Clinical, Translational Research Program Fellowship; Drug Information Association Scholarship.
Helped in developing the Orphan Products and Development Database at the FDA via Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education in 2008. Recipient of the Drug Information Association Scholarship in 2010. Winning the Teacher of the year in the College of Pharmacy, UMN in 2011
I'm talented, empathetic, intuitive, an innovative thinker, a skillful motivator, trustworthy, compassionate, ethical, with a strong moral compass
Unfortunately, was a victim of identity theft & cyber hack which led us to be homeless. Fortunate to have kindest souls who've helped my family get back on our feet
My expertise in leadership, data analysis, a healthcare provider, scientist, researcher, public policy maker, a Regulatory Affair Consultant; I will fight to fix our broken system because I know the root problem lies in systemic corruption.
I stand for unity, we are the United States Of America, not the divided states of America.
Time to put the P in Progressive and Deliver economic equality leveling the playing field regardless of partisanshipMEDICARE FOR ALL. I'm an advocate and for deliver, healthcare is a human right. Despite Governor Cooper's best efforts to expand Medicaid in the state of N.C. Both the house and senate have failed to deliver ACCESS to healthcare. North Carolina's uninsured rate of 11.3 percent in 2019 was still well above the national rate of 9.2 percent due to the failure to expand Medicaid in the state. 142,000 children (under 19) are uninsured in North Carolina, a 9 percent increase since 2018. For the first 5 years of the affordable care act, N.C. reps and senators allowed 25 billion to leave the state of N.C. by REFUSING to expand Medicaid costing thousands of jobs. Senior Citizens on social security shouldn't have to choose between food & medicine.
- A Vision for N.C. Education. I believe the schools are underfunded as only 2.2 cents on the dollar goes towards education nationally. We owe it to our students to care for children with special needs so they may thrive and reach their full potential. In the long run it is more physically responsible for taxpayers to fund our schools. I.E.P & ELC programs are underfunded and I will fight for teachers to strengthen their unions. I worked in the FDA and I jointly implemented the orphan drug products and development database for the FDA. Also implemented a combined database for matching those orphan products with reporting their rare diseases at the National Institute Of Health (NIH). Designated orphan products via reviewing drug application
- Infrastructure & Job Creation: I'm passionate about job creation, I will fight for subsidies equally distributed to small farmers. We should not discriminate and pick winners and losers in the farming sector. Our farmers are an investment for a vibrant economy in N.C. On my youtube channel, I discuss the perils of generic drugs, and the consequences of deregulation. I will fight to create jobs in the FDA to ensure Americans are protected. I will fight to ensure the EPA invests in N.C. to upgrade our water grid. I propose N.C. leads the country in solar panel manufacturing stregnething job security for the great citizens of North Carolina who've been neglected for generations due to gerrymandering
Access to healthcare
Protections for seniors, Medicare
Equal education opportunities on par with the rest of the country
Teachers unions
Clean water
Farming subsidies
FDA protections
Manufacturing in the solar sector
Infrastructure
Improving the Amber alert program
Ensuring taxation with representation ensuring tax dollars are allocated to citizens who need it most.
Habitat for humanity
Housing for the homeless
A fair just tax code
Prison reform
Working with the police unions
One of my greatest heroes is Jonas Salks."Father of Biophilosophy"
Without Jonas Salks we would not have the polio vaccine.
Rather than capitalize off his innovation saving millions of lives, Johnas Salks gifted his patent to humanity. He spared millions of lives and is an inspiration for altruism which should motivate people globally to make the world a better place, satisfied with the knowledge they've left a positive imprint for humanity over profit.
America is 5% of the global population. Civilization is fragile. Johnathan Swift touched on multiple issues but they theme while satirical in nature, it came from a place of anger and rage.
Johnathan wrote this book, during a potato famine in which the UK was exporting Ireland's crops. Currently, the world produces enough food to feed 10 billion people, and yet, farmers are PAID to burn crops, crops are rotting, while Americans are going hungry. This has been well studied and is known as artificial scarcity.
The USA has the most armed population on earth, Yemen clocks in as second. The guns in Yemen still did not protect against a civil war.
The USA is moving towards an economic class war with hopelessness featuring in the hearts of millions.
Anger of not being heard, represented, senators like Mitch McConnel having police remove peaceful protesters from his office, all eventually have consequences.
I believe in integrity, this means, no pac money.
Passionate, with convictions.
Informed
A responsible individual which crafts their own bills without the aid of lobbyists. We cannot fix a corrupted system and still accept pac money.
One who can disagree to disagree, compromise across the aisle in order to pass legislation for the good of constituents.
One does not need to agree with another individual to understand where they're coming from.
I am passionate about delivering Justice and Equality to ALL People. I want to shield people from the adversities and injustices my family has suffered through. I am genuine and here to make a positive impact for the good of my country and people, the American people
A senator needs to comprehend the individuals they claim to represent and do the bidding of the will of the masses.
Protect citizens and fight to preserve their lives.
The fall of the Berlin wall signified an end of The Cold War & a new world era.
Communism no longer strangled Eastern Europe.
Fortunately, Christmas day, 1991, marked the final day the Kremlin flew the communist flag.. The USSR dissolved.
Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Belorussia, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia were finally independent.
Socialism & communism aren't the same. Communism is authoritarian to the core, unelected cronies dictate within communist countries.
In Democratic socialism. workers choose the government, like Norway or Denmark, ax money goes for safety net programs.
During the 2020 Democratic debates, Pete Buttigieg endorsed Denmark as the 'American Dream'
Unlike the GOP, progressives stand for taxation with representation. U.S. taxpayers deserve their tax dollars allocated to safety net programs both statewide and nationally.
If one views the history of the first Libertarians and anarchists, one will learn Libertarianism and anarchy owes its roots to communism and goes against US values.
Libertarianism and anarchy are 'sects' of communism. I do not believe in the mythology of 'The Libertarian Left'.
2011, Ron Paul on stage with the tea party chanting 'let the uninsured die' shows me the United States is on a trajectory towards anarchy if the United States continues towards the dangerous path of communism which is reverting back to what the U.S.S.R stood for rather than improving our great country by ensuring safety programs are in place for citizens.
I am a definition purest. Socialism and communism aren't the same, Democratic socialism and communism aren't the same.
We, the American people, need to invest our time into learning history and after the disaster that is Trump, we need to implement progressive policies by investing in our own country.
I remained employed by McDonalds for 6 months.
While my parents were going through a divorce, I was working in McDonalds whilst simultaneously, attending Virginia commonwealth university.
I had been accepted into the fast track Medical School.
While I was attending the fast track program, I went to work as a hostess for The Silver Diner. I have nothing but fond memories of interacting with customers and their smiling faces. The staff at the diner were hard working, generous and beyond kind.
Once my parent's divorce was finalized, I was forced to quit the diner which was my sanctuary of peace outside of the school setting and forced into an arranged marriage.
Reflection on Strong Women
Americans often ask "What is the military fighting for"? With the below acknowledgement(s).
Bloated healthcare costs
Climate change
Rotting crops
Education investment
Car loan bubble
Reuters reported 3,310 municipals have double the lead in the water than Flint.
There is a proven link between lead and autism.
Job creation for qualified individuals, I propose like other countries where students start learning a second language by age 7, we start teaching the future generation by 2024 Spanish from age 7 until high school.
By 2030, 75% of new jobs created will be for Spanish speakers.
Student loan debt crisis.
Homeless crisis leading to TB outbreaks
Foreign relations with China, the USA is a service based economy, China does steal US patents w/ 0 regard of international law.
USA cannot compete with Chinese slave labor out of Dubai (see vice news) -
Trump was capitalizing off slave labor in Dubai.
Overcrowded prison system
Unemployment levels without rescue packages to start creating jobs within the United States
.I have an immigration plan which does uphold the constitution completely different than anything the Dems or GOP has ever presented
Future pandemics like the Nipah virus mentioned by Dr. Kim from the KCDC
Bankruptcies continuing to climb. Currently, 70% of bankruptcies are due to Medical debt which affects an individuals' credit score
An unfair FICO score system
Undermining unions,
Americans become victims of ageism in the workforce, despite, studies do show, diversity of generations improves the work ethic
Food insecurity
Obesity,
Lack of transportation infrastructure cost The US trillions
Decaying suburbs
ISP monopolies
Adequate PPE Rebuild the more than 400 hospitals which have shut down
We cannot afford to subsidize donors
Unregulated Wall St.
The Senate has the sole power to confirm those of the President's appointments that require consent, and to provide advice and consent to ratify treaties. There are, however, two exceptions to this rule: the House must also approve appointments to the Vice Presidency and any treaty that involves foreign trade.
The Senate is the side of Congress where every state has the same number of votes (two). ... For each state, this means that after two elections to the Senate, during one election no one will be elected to the Senate. Also, like the House, the Senate can override the president's veto with a ⅔ (67 votes) vote.
Unlike a state's congress, a federal senator represents the entire state.
Most senators have held previous positions of office. Many lobbyists were attorneys. Attorneys are all too familiar with the concept of 'conflict of interest'
Common sense dictates, accepting money from lobbyists is a conflict of interest.
A senator who is elected solely on merit, work experience, in the private or public sector rejecting lobbyist funds, is far more qualified than a senator who owes their donors favors rather than allocate tax money for the good of their constituents.
We, the American people cannot change a system by taking pac money.
A bill can be introduced in either chamber of Congress by a senator or representative who sponsors it. ... Then both chambers vote on the same exact bill and, if it passes, they present it to the president. The president then considers the bill.
There are countless examples of lobbyists writing US legislations, Congress from both the house and senate collecting checks from lobbyists at ALEC conventions.
The USA has regressed to developing nation status, congress has an insider trading problem which the stock act has not gone far enough to eradicate full immunity from congress eliminating that privilege.
The American people elect representatives and senators to represent them, not the donors.
MIT reported the US has regressed to a developing nation for the majority of American citizens.
The filibuster is used far more often by the GOP than the Democrats, and hinders progress.
A majority is a majority.
The GOP does not ask permission or wait for Democrats to agree on legislation.
The Democrats continue to get elected out of congress because the average American doesn't comprehend basic civics enough to know how the filibuster which started with good intent has been weaponized making public policy favorable to citizens less obtainable.
With each election cycle, congress is correctly viewed as being less and less useful.
Trump was a pseudo populist president, compromise has been removed when rendering decisions shaped for the good of taxpayers.
Society is fragile, congress is saturated with dark money, every election cycle becoming increasingly more expensive.
For every Democrat which chooses to break with progressive policies introduced to the house or senate, or vote against the individuals who believed in Democratic leadership, both parties are viewed by the American people as bought by the same lobbyists to do their bidding, not the will of the people.
I fear for 2022. If the Democrats don't comprehend that Joe Biden endorsed Bernie Sanders post Hillary's loss, 2022 will be a repeat of 2010.
The great gerrymander of 2012 showed DESPITE Democrats abandoning universal healthcare in favor of GOP Romney's ACA, they lost any ways and voters rightfully felt betrayed.
The constitution as it currently stands is how I would confirm a presidential appointee.
I was furious Mitch McConnel refused to confirm Merrick as the SC justice.
We can no longer afford as a nation to continue to remain centered and conservative and still retain the title progressive.
If Independents were a voting block, it would be the largest voting block, Independents do not fit into the folds of any current party as is due to the fact with each election cycle, congress represents their donors.
60 minutes showed both parties are dialing for dollars essentially becoming telemarketers.
All the censorship in the world isn't going to eradicate the anger building in people.
We need to start representing the people.
From a personal standpoint:
I would reject an appointee who is against Row V Wade
Mandatory draft
US House Committee on finances.
The Committee on Education and Labor'
He was so popular, he was elected for 4 terms. We, the American people need to return to an era where politicians serve the people, not their donors.
Confirmation by the Senate allows the President to formally appoint the candidate to the court. The Constitution does not set any qualifications for service as a Justice, thus the President may nominate any individual to serve on the Court.
I would like to remove money from elections.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
2022 Elections
External links
Footnotes
