North Carolina's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024 (March 5 Republican primary)

2026 → ← 2022
North Carolina's 2nd Congressional District
Democratic primary Republican primary General election
Election details
Filing deadline: December 15, 2023
Primary: March 5, 2024 Primary runoff: May 14, 2024 General: November 5, 2024
How to vote
Poll times: 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Voting in North Carolina
Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Democratic DDHQ and The Hill: Safe Democratic Inside Elections: Solid Democratic Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Democratic
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds U.S. House battlegrounds Federal and state primary competitiveness Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2024
See also
North Carolina's 2nd Congressional District 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 10th • 11th • 12th • 13th • 14th North Carolina elections, 2024 U.S. Congress elections, 2024 U.S. Senate elections, 2024 U.S. House elections, 2024 Alabama U.S. House racesAlaska U.S. House racesArizona U.S. House racesArkansas U.S. House racesCalifornia U.S. House racesColorado U.S. House racesConnecticut U.S. House racesDelaware U.S. House racesFlorida U.S. House racesGeorgia U.S. House racesHawaii U.S. House racesIdaho U.S. House racesIllinois U.S. House racesIndiana U.S. House racesIowa U.S. House racesKansas U.S. House racesKentucky U.S. House racesLouisiana U.S. House racesMaine U.S. House racesMaryland U.S. House racesMassachusetts U.S. House racesMichigan U.S. House racesMinnesota U.S. House racesMississippi U.S. House racesMissouri U.S. House racesMontana U.S. House racesNebraska U.S. House racesNevada U.S. House racesNew Hampshire U.S. House racesNew Jersey U.S. House racesNew Mexico U.S. House racesNew York U.S. House racesNorth Carolina U.S. House racesNorth Dakota U.S. House racesOhio U.S. House racesOklahoma U.S. House racesOregon U.S. House racesPennsylvania U.S. House racesRhode Island U.S. House racesSouth Carolina U.S. House racesSouth Dakota U.S. House racesTennessee U.S. House racesTexas U.S. House racesUtah U.S. House racesVermont U.S. House racesVirginia U.S. House racesWashington U.S. House racesWest Virginia U.S. House racesWisconsin U.S. House racesWyoming U.S. House racesSubmit

A Republican Party primary took place on March 5, 2024, in North Carolina's 2nd Congressional District to determine which Republican candidate would run in the district's general election on November 5, 2024.

Alan Swain advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House North Carolina District 2.

All 435 seats were up for election. At the time of the election, Republicans had a 220 to 212 majority with three vacancies. As of June 2024, 45 members of the U.S. House had announced they were not running for re-election. To read more about the U.S. House elections taking place this year, click here.

In the 2022 election in this district, the Democratic candidate won 64.7%-35.3%. Daily Kos calculated what the results of the 2020 presidential election in this district would have been following redistricting. Joe Biden (D) would have defeated Donald Trump (R) 66.9%-31.5%.

North Carolina conducted redistricting between the 2022 and 2024 elections. As a result, district lines in this state changed. To review how redistricting took place in North Carolina and to see maps of the new districts, click here. For a list of all states that drew new district lines between 2022 and 2024, click here.

Candidate filing deadline	Primary election	General election
December 15, 2023	March 5, 2024	November 5, 2024

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. North Carolina utilizes a semi-closed primary system. Parties decide who may vote in their respective primaries. Voters may choose a primary ballot without impacting their unaffiliated status.

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

This page focuses on North Carolina's 2nd Congressional District Republican primary. For more in-depth information on the district's Democratic primary and the general election, see the following pages:

• North Carolina's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024 (March 5 Democratic primary)
• North Carolina's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024

Candidates and election results

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House North Carolina District 2

Alan Swain defeated Eugene Douglass and Robert Morales Vergara in the Republican primary for U.S. House North Carolina District 2 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Alan Swain	59.5	25,759
		Eugene Douglass	22.5	9,751
		Robert Morales Vergara	17.9	7,747

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 43,257
= 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

• Sandy Roberson (R)

Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.

Eugene Douglass

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography:  "I am a retired Chemistry professor who grew up in Swarthmore, PA. I have lived in North Carolina since 2005 when I came to teach Chemistry at UNCP. I taught College Chemistry for over 30 years. "

---

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

---

Small Federal Government, less regulation and lower taxes. Bring responsibility back to the 50 states.

---

Get the Federal Government out of Local Education, disband the Department of Education and all it's regulations, to return to state and local authorities.

---

Protect Innocent Human Life, from Conception until Natural Death. End Abortion for birth control purposes, and regulate it to spare as many lives as possible, end the castration and mutilation of children to fit a depraved eugenics ideology.

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House North Carolina District 2 in 2024.

Robert Morales Vergara

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography:  "Robert Morales is a dedicated public servant with a strong foundation in conservative values and a deep commitment to strengthening communities. Born into a family deeply rooted in public service and conservative principles, Robert was influenced by his father's 25 years of dedication to serving the public and his mother's passionate advocacy for traditional family values. Growing up in Puerto Rico, Robert witnessed the erosion of traditional values, which fueled his determination to preserve these principles. He began higher education at the Inter-American University of Puerto Rico, balancing academics with employment, while continuing to dedicate himself to his mission of serving Puerto Rican citizens. Robert's career in public service took off when he joined the Office of the Governor, where he strategically identified and utilized federal funding opportunities to empower Puerto Rican communities. His commitment to conservative principles, including fiscal responsibility and limited government, made him a formidable figure in politics. His impact extended beyond his official duties when he founded the First Governor's Office Internship Program, broadening access to government decision-making for like-minded individuals. Robert's talents led him to serve in Durham, NC, where he continued to champion community development and economic growth. Currently serving in Raleigh, NC, Robert Morales remains dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for residents."

---

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

---

Strong Conservative Values: Robert's campaign emphasizes a steadfast commitment to conservative principles such as fiscal responsibility, limited government, and individual liberty. He believes in preserving the traditions and values that have made our nation strong, ensuring that government serves the people, not the other way around.

---

Community Empowerment: Robert is dedicated to strengthening communities by identifying and utilizing federal funding opportunities effectively. His track record of fostering economic growth and individual liberty in Durham, NC and Raleigh, NC, reflects his passion for improving the lives of residents. He aims to bring these successful initiatives to a broader audience.

---

Proven Leadership: With years of experience in public service and a reputation as a tenacious and effective conservative political figure, Robert Morales has a track record of responsible fiscal management and unwavering dedication to his principles. Voters can trust him to deliver results and make a positive impact in local government.

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House North Carolina District 2 in 2024.

Alan Swain

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography:  "Alan Swain was born in Yokohama, Japan and is a retired United States Army Colonel, serving 26 years. He earned an undergraduate degree from The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina in 1976. He graduated with Masters from Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University, Auburn University, and Army War College. Swain's career experience includes commanding soldiers at all levels, AH-1 and AH-64 Attack helicopter pilot, 2 tours at the Pentagon, served 2 Presidents at the White House, achieved the master aviator badge, test pilot skills with the U.S. Army and was a successful small business owner. He has been affiliated with the following organizations: • Association of Citadel Men (life member) • Association of the United States Army (life member) • Army Aviation Association of America (life member) • Military Officer Association of America (life member) • National Rifle Association (life member) • Veterans of Foreign Wars (life member) • American Legion (life member) "

---

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

---

Inflation-Economy-National Debt. For 3 years Americans have been suffering from 18+% inflation. The cost of groceries, energy, housing, fuel are not sustainable. I commit to a balanced budget; zero-based budgeting; cut Federal spending; no more Continuing Resolutions (CR); stop Democrat tax hikes; make permanent the 2017 individual tax rates; halt federal taxing of social security entitlements; regain energy independence/dominance; and halt BIDENOMICs. Like Mr. Biden, I too support MAGAnomics.

---

US immigration allows 1.1M to legally emigrate annually. Allowing 8.5M undocumented to enter over the last 3 years is not acceptable. Failure to secure our national borders is a national security failure by Mr Biden. I will work to build a physical and technology wall; restore Remain in Mexico policy, end sanctuary city funding; halt catch and release and change to catch and deport; increase CBP agents; increase immigration judges (3 year backlog is unacceptable); and work for immigration reform

---

Public Safety is on the ballot. I fully suport funding law enforcement. Criminals must be held accountable. Our judicial system must enforce current laws. Allowing repeat violent offenders release on no cash bail is a detriment to Rule of Law. We must halt woke Das for not following the law and allowing criminals to skirt the law. We must help the mentally ill. I support increasing mental health institutions to perform needed evaluations; and Comprehensive health systems needed to identify individuals of concern. Drugs and human trafficking are out of control due to lax border security which is impacting our national security. We must close our borders and increase punishment of drug and human trafficking crimes.

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House North Carolina District 2 in 2024.

Voting information

See also: Voting in North Carolina

Election information in North Carolina: March 5, 2024, election.

What was the voter registration deadline?

• In-person: March 2, 2024
• By mail: Postmarked by Feb. 9, 2024
• Online: Feb. 9, 2024

Was absentee/mail-in voting available to all voters?

N/A

What was the absentee/mail-in ballot request deadline?

• In-person: Feb. 27, 2024
• By mail: Received by Feb. 27, 2024
• Online: Feb. 27, 2024

What was the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadline?

• In-person: March 5, 2024
• By mail: Received by March 5, 2024

Was early voting available to all voters?

N/A

What were the early voting start and end dates?

Feb. 15, 2024 to March 2, 2024

Were all voters required to present ID at the polls? If so, was a photo or non-photo ID required?

N/A

When were polls open on Election Day?

6:30 a.m. - 7:30 p.m. (EST)

Campaign finance

Name	Party	Receipts*	Disbursements**	Cash on hand	Date
Eugene Douglass	Republican Party	$0	$0	$0	Data not available***
Robert Morales Vergara	Republican Party	$0	$0	$0	Data not available***
Alan Swain	Republican Party	$33,206	$34,107	$1,095	As of December 31, 2024
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2024. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC). * According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." ** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election. *** Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

District analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about voter composition, past elections, and demographics in both the district and the state.

• District map - A map of the district before and after redistricting ahead of the 2024 election.
• Competitiveness - Information about the competitiveness of 2024 U.S. House elections in the state.
• Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the district and the state.
• State party control - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.

• District map
• Competitiveness
• Presidential elections
• State party control

Below is the district map used in the 2022 election next to the map in place for the 2024 election. Click on a map below to enlarge it.

2022

2024

See also: Primary election competitiveness in state and federal government, 2024

This section contains data on U.S. House primary election competitiveness in North Carolina.

North Carolina U.S. House competitiveness, 2014-2024
Office	Districts/ offices	Seats	Open seats	Candidates	Possible primaries	Contested Democratic primaries	Contested Republican primaries	% of contested primaries	Incumbents in contested primaries	% of incumbents in contested primaries
2024	14	14	5	64	28	2	11	46.4%	4	44.4%
2022	14	14	4	100	28	9	13	78.6%	7	70.0%
2020	13	13	3	64	26	8	5	50.0%	3	30.0%
2018	13	13	0	56	26	10	7	65.4%	8	61.5%
2016	13	13	1	74	26	6	10	61.5%	9	75.0%
2014	13	13	3	60	26	8	9	65.4%	6	60.0%

Post-filing deadline analysis

The following analysis covers all U.S. House districts up for election in North Carolina in 2024. Information below was calculated on 1/10/2024, and may differ from information shown in the table above due to candidate replacements and withdrawals after that time.

Sixty-four candidates filed to run for North Carolina’s 14 U.S. House districts in 2024, including 15 Democrats and 49 Republicans. That’s 4.6 candidates per district, less than the 7.14 candidates per district in 2022, the first election after the number of congressional districts in North Carolina increased from 13 to 14.

In 2020, when the state still had 13 Congressional districts, 4.9 candidates filed to run. In 2018, 4.3 candidates filed, and, in 2016, 5.7 did.

The 2024 election was the first to take place under new district lines that the North Carolina General Assembly adopted on October 25, 2023.

The 64 candidates who filed to run in 2024 were fewer than the 100 who ran in 2022. In 2020, 64 candidates also ran, although North Carolina had one fewer district then. Fifty-six candidates ran in 2018, the decade low.

Five seats were open in 2024, one more than in 2022 and a decade high.

Reps. Jeff Jackson (D-14th) and Dan Bishop (R-8th) did not run for re-election in order to run for state attorney general, while Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-10th) retired from public office. Reps. Kathy Manning (D-6th) and Wiley Nickel (D-13th), who did not run for re-election either, cited the partisan lean of their redrawn districts as the reason.

Fifteen candidates—one Democrat and 14 Republicans—ran for the open 13th district, the most candidates running for a seat in 2024. Thirteen primaries—two Democratic and 11 Republican—were contested. That was fewer than the 22 contested primaries in 2022, and tied with 2020 as the lowest number of contested primaries this decade. As a percentage of all possible primaries, the 13 contested primaries in 2024 were the lowest this decade (46%). North Carolina had 13 districts in 2020, making the 13 contested primaries that year 50% of all possible major party primaries.

Four incumbents—one Democrat and three Republicans—faced primary challengers. The 3rd and 6th Congressional districts were guaranteed to Republicans because no Democrats filed to run. Republicans filed to run in every congressional district, meaning none were guaranteed to Democrats.

Partisan Voter Index

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Heading into the 2024 elections, based on results from the 2020 and 2016 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was D+15. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 15 percentage points more Democratic than the national average. This made North Carolina's 2nd the 93rd most Democratic district nationally.

2020 presidential election results

The table below shows what the vote in the 2020 presidential election would have been in this district. The presidential election data was compiled by Daily Kos.

2020 presidential results in North Carolina's 2nd based on 2024 district lines
Joe Biden	Donald Trump
66.9%	31.5%

Inside Elections Baselines

See also: Inside Elections

Inside Elections' Baseline is a figure that analyzes all federal and statewide election results from the district over the past four election cycles. The results are combined in an index estimating the strength of a typical Democratic or Republican candidate in the congressional district. The table below displays the Baseline data for this district.

Inside Elections Baseline for 2024
Democratic Baseline	Republican Baseline	Difference
64.4	34.9	D+29.5

Presidential voting history

See also: Presidential election in North Carolina, 2020

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

See also: Party control of North Carolina state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of North Carolina's congressional delegation as of May 2024.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from North Carolina
Party	U.S. Senate	U.S. House	Total
Democratic	0	4	4
Republican	2	10	12
Independent	0	0	0
Vacancies	0	0	0
Total	2	14	16

State executive

The table below displays the officeholders in North Carolina's top four state executive offices as of May 2024.

State executive officials in North Carolina, May 2024
Office	Officeholder
Governor	Roy Cooper
Lieutenant Governor	Mark Robinson
Secretary of State	Elaine Marshall
Attorney General	Josh Stein

State legislature

North Carolina State Senate

Party		As of February 2024
	Democratic Party	20
	Republican Party	30
	Other	0
	Vacancies	0
Total		50

North Carolina House of Representatives

Party		As of February 2024
	Democratic Party	48
	Republican Party	72
	Other	0
	Vacancies	0
Total		120

Trifecta control

The table below shows the state's trifecta status from 1992 until the 2024 election.

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

Ballot access

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in North Carolina in the 2024 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in North Carolina, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2024
State	Office	Party	Signatures required	Filing fee	Filing deadline	Source
North Carolina	U.S. House	Ballot-qualified party	5% of registered voters in the same party or 8,000, whichever is greater	$1,740.00	12/15/2023	Source
North Carolina	U.S. House	Unaffiliated	10,000	$1,740.00	3/5/2024	Source

See also

• North Carolina's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024 (March 5 Democratic primary)
• North Carolina's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024
• United States House elections in North Carolina, 2024 (March 5 Democratic primaries)
• United States House elections in North Carolina, 2024 (March 5 Republican primaries)
• United States House Democratic Party primaries, 2024
• United States House Republican Party primaries, 2024
• United States House of Representatives elections, 2024
• U.S. House battlegrounds, 2024

External links

Suggest a link

• Search Google News for this topic

Footnotes

[show]

North Carolina's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Ted Budd (R)

Thom Tillis (R)

Representatives

District 1

Donald Davis (D)

District 2

Deborah Ross (D)

District 3

Gregory Murphy (R)

District 4

Valerie Foushee (D)

District 5

Virginia Foxx (R)

District 6

Addison McDowell (R)

District 7

David Rouzer (R)

District 8

Mark Harris (R)

District 9

Richard Hudson (R)

District 10

Pat Harrigan (R)

District 11

Chuck Edwards (R)

District 12

Alma Adams (D)

District 13

Brad Knott (R)

District 14

Timothy Moore (R)

Republican Party (12)

Democratic Party (4)

Ballotpedia

About

Overview • What people are saying • Support Ballotpedia • Contact • Contribute • Job opportunities

---

Executive: Leslie Graves, Founder and CEO • Gwen Beattie, Chief Operating Officer

Communications: Alison Graves, Director of Communications • Carley Allensworth • Abigail Campbell • Frank Festa • Sarah Groat • Nathaniel Harwood • Dillon Redmond • Erica Shumaker
External Relations: Geoff Pallay, Director of External Relations • Ken Carbullido, Vice President of Election Product and Technology Strategy • Ashley Fleming • Thomas Mardik • Hannah Nelson
Operations: Meghann Olshefski, Director of Operations • Amanda Herbert • Mandy Morris • Caroline Presnell • Kelly Rindfleisch
Tech: Matt Latourelle, Director of Technology Operations • Ryan Burch • Kirsten Corrao • Beth Dellea • Travis Eden • Tate Kamish • Margaret Kearney • Eric Lotto • Joseph Sanchez • Mary Susmitha

Contributors: Scott Rasmussen

---

Editorial Content

Josh Altic, Director of Content • Daniel Anderson, Associate Director of Elections & Data • Cory Eucalitto, Associate Director of Features • Ryan Byrne, Managing Editor of Ballot Measures • Mandy McConnell, Managing Editor of News • Doug Kronaizl, Managing Editor of Local Expansion • Abbey Smith, Managing Editor of Elections • Janie Valentine, Managing Editor of Law • Joel Williams. Managing Editor of Events • Andrew Bahl • Jaclyn Beran • Marielle Bricker • Joseph Brusgard • Emma Burlingame • Kelly Coyle • Jon Dunn • Thomas Ellis • Nicole Fisher • Joseph Greaney • Thomas Grobben • Brianna Hosea • Molly Kehoe • Tyler King • Glorie Martinez • Norm Leahy, Senior Editor • Nathan Maxwell • Jimmy McAllister • Brandon McCauley • Ellie Mikus • Ellen Morrissey • Mackenzie Murphy • Kaley Platek • Samantha Post • Adam Powell • Annelise Reinwald • Ethan Rice • Spencer Richardson • Victoria Rose • Briana Ryan • Myj Saintyl • Maddy Salucka • Emma Soukup • Alexis Thacker • Mina Vogel • Samuel Wonacott • Trenton Woodcox