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North Carolina House of Representatives elections, 2016
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| 2016 North Carolina House Elections | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Primary | March 15, 2016 |
| General | November 8, 2016 |
| 2016 Election Results | |
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| 2016 Elections | |
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| • State legislative elections in 2016 | |
All 120 seats in the North Carolina House of Representatives were up for election in 2016. Democrats gained one seat after the November 2016 election.
Introduction
Elections for the North Carolina House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election was held on March 15, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016.[1] The candidate filing deadline was December 21, 2015.[2]
Majority control
- See also: Partisan composition of state houses
Heading into the election, the Republican Party held the majority in the North Carolina House of Representatives:
| North Carolina House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 7, 2016 | After November 8, 2016 | |
| Democratic Party | 45 | 46 | |
| Republican Party | 74 | 74 | |
| Unaffiliated | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 120 | 120 | |
Retired incumbents
Fourteen incumbent representatives did not run for re-election in 2016. Those incumbents were:
| Name | Party | Current Office |
|---|---|---|
| Paul Tine |  Unaffiliated |
House District 6 |
| Rick Catlin |  Republican |
House District 20 |
| N. Leo Daughtry | Republican |
House District 26 |
| James Langdon, Jr. | Republican |
House District 28 |
| Nathan Baskerville |  Democratic |
House District 32 |
| Paul Stam | Republican |
House District 37 |
| Ken Waddell | Democratic |
House District 46 |
| Rayne Brown | Republican |
House District 81 |
| Tricia Cotham | Democratic |
House District 100 |
| Dan Bishop | Republican |
House District 104 |
| Jacqueline Schaffer | Republican |
House District 105 |
| Mike Hager | Republican |
House District 112 |
| Chris Whitmire | Republican |
House District 113 |
| Roger West | Republican |
House District 120 |
Note: Jacqueline Schaffer (R) resigned from the state House on April 22, 2016. Scott Stone (R) was appointed to the chamber on May 12, 2016, to replace Schaffer.
Note: Charles Jeter (R-92) resigned from the state House on July 25, 2016. Justin Moore (R) was appointed to the seat on August 23, 2016, to fill Jeter's remaining term. Beth Danae Caulfield replaced Jeter on the ballot after he resigned.
Note: Michael Hager (R-112) resigned from the state House on August 16, 2016. David Rogers (R) was appointed to the seat on August 19, 2016, to fill Hager's remaining term.
Note: Rick Catlin (R-20) resigned from the state House on August 15, 2016. Holly Grange (R) was appointed to the chamber on August 29, 2016, to replace Catlin.
2016 election competitiveness
North Carolina sees a dip in electoral competitiveness.
Ballotpedia conducts a yearly study of electoral competitiveness in state legislative elections. Details on how well North Carolina performed in the study are provided in the image below. Click here for the full 2016 Competitiveness Analysis »
- In the North Carolina State Senate, there were 16 Democratic incumbents and 34 Republican incumbents. Four incumbents faced primary challengers in the Democratic Party. There were three primary challenges in the Republican primary.
- In the House, there were 45 Democratic incumbents, 74 Republican incumbents, and 1 unaffiliated incumbent. Nine state representatives faced primary opposition in the Democratic Party. There were 15 primary challenges in the Republican primary.
- Overall, 18.6 percent of Democratic incumbents and 21.4 percent of GOP incumbents faced primary opposition in all of the state legislatures with elections in 2016.
- The cumulative figure for how many state legislative candidates faced no major party opposition in November in these states was 41.8 percent. This compares to 32.7 percent in 2010, 38.3 percent in 2012, and 43.0 percent in 2014.
List of candidates
General election
| 2016 North Carolina House general election candidates | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| District |  Democrat
|
 Republican
|
Other |
| 1 | Sam Davis: 12,240 | Bob Steinburg: 25,363 (I)  |
|
| 2 | Joe Parrish: 14,775 | Larry Yarborough: 22,760 (I) |
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| 3 | Marva Fisher Baldwin: 12,638 | Michael Speciale: 23,273 (I) |
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| 4 | No candidate | James Dixon (I) |
|
| 5 | Howard Hunter III (I) |
No candidate | |
| 6 | Warren Judge: 20,471 | Beverly Boswell: 22,022 |
|
| 7 | Bobbie Richardson: 23,329 (I) |
William Duke Hancock II: 11,072 | |
| 8 | Charlie Pat Farris: 21,166 | Susan Martin: 21,329 (I) |
|
| 9 | Brian Farkas: 17,007 | Gregory Murphy: 22,869 (I) |
|
| 10 | Evelyn Paul: 10,514 | John Bell: 26,440 (I) |
|
| 11 | Duane Hall: 24,624 (I) |
Ray Martin: 12,924 | Brian Lewis: 2,897 (L) |
| 12 | George Graham (I) |
No candidate | |
| 13 | Rodney Alexander: 12,024 | Patricia McElraft: 29,188 (I) |
|
| 14 | No candidate | George Cleveland (I) |
|
| 15 | Dan Whitten: 5,797 | Phillip Shepard: 13,273 (I) |
|
| 16 | Steve Unger: 11,656 | Chris Millis: 23,649 (I) |
|
| 17 | Charles Warren: 16,549 | Frank Iler: 32,757 (I) |
|
| 18 | Susi Hamilton: 22,006 (I) |
Jerry Benton: 14,011 | |
| 19 | No candidate | Ted Davis, Jr. (I) |
|
| 20 | No candidate | Holly Grange (I) |
|
| 21 | Larry Bell (I) |
No candidate | |
| 22 | William Brisson (I) |
No candidate | |
| 23 | Shelly Willingham (I) |
No candidate | |
| 24 | Jean Farmer-Butterfield (I) |
No candidate | |
| 25 | James Gailliard: 13,099 | Jeffrey Collins: 27,969 (I) |
|
| 26 | Rich Nixon: 18,716 | Donna McDowell White: 25,899 |
|
| 27 | Michael Wray (I) |
No candidate | |
| 28 | Patricia Oliver: 10,897 | Larry Strickland: 26,161 |
|
| 29 | Larry Hall (I) |
No candidate | |
| 30 | Paul Luebke: 37,094 (I) |
Elissa Fuchs: 13,132 | |
| 31 | Henry Michaux, Jr. (I) |
No candidate | |
| 32 | Terry Garrison |
No candidate | |
| 33 | Rosa Gill (I) |
No candidate | |
| 34 | Grier Martin: 31,335 (I) |
Bill Morris: 15,049 | |
| 35 | Terence Everitt: 22,145 | Chris Malone: 25,117 (I) |
|
| 36 | Jennifer Ferrell: 23,875 | Nelson Dollar: 25,295 (I) |
Brian Irving: 2,184 (L) |
| 37 | Randy Barrow: 22,569 | Linda Hunt-Williams: 27,448 |
Robert Rose: 2,474 (L) |
| 38 | Yvonne Lewis Holley: 28,990 (I) |
No candidate | Olen Watson III: 5,196 (L) |
| 39 | Darren Jackson (I) |
No candidate | |
| 40 | Joe John: 23,786 |
Marilyn Avila: 23,402 (I) | |
| 41 | Gale Adcock: 27,491 (I) |
Chris Shoffner: 20,745 | |
| 42 | Marvin Lucas, Jr. (I) |
No candidate | |
| 43 | Elmer Floyd (I) |
No candidate | |
| 44 | William Richardson: 15,433 (I) |
Jim Arp: 15,086 | |
| 45 | No candidate | John Szoka (I) |
|
| 46 | Tim Benton: 11,836 | Brenden Jones: 19,607 |
Thomas Howell, Jr.: 1,052 (L) |
| 47 | Charles Graham (I) |
No candidate | |
| 48 | Garland Pierce (I) |
No candidate | |
| 49 | Cynthia Ball: 26,975 |
Gary Pendleton: 26,155 (I) | David Ulmer: 2,299 (L) |
| 50 | Graig Meyer: 27,278 (I) |
Rod Chaney: 20,347 | |
| 51 | Brad Salmon: 14,262 (I) | John Sauls: 17,904 |
|
| 52 | No candidate | Jamie Boles (I) |
|
| 53 | Jon Blum: 12,678 | David Lewis, Sr.: 19,548 (I) |
|
| 54 | Robert Reives: 24,773 (I) |
Wesley Seawell: 18,534 | |
| 55 | Kim Hargett: 13,719 | Mark Brody: 20,901 (I) |
|
| 56 | Verla Insko (I) |
No candidate | |
| 57 | Mary Harrison (I) |
No candidate | |
| 58 | Amos Quick |
No candidate | |
| 59 | Scott Jones: 19,060 | Jon Hardister: 28,980 (I) |
|
| 60 | Cecil Brockman (I) |
No candidate | |
| 61 | No candidate | John Faircloth (I) |
|
| 62 | No candidate | John Blust (I) |
|
| 63 | No candidate | Stephen M. Ross (I) |
|
| 64 | No candidate | Dennis Riddell (I) |
|
| 65 | H. Keith Duncan: 14,336 | Bert Jones: 21,857 (I) |
|
| 66 | Ken Goodman (I) |
No candidate | |
| 67 | Carson R. Snyder: 10,637 | Justin Burr: 20,421 (I) |
Billy Mills: 7,288 (Unaffiliated) |
| 68 | No candidate | D. Craig Horn (I) |
|
| 69 | Gordon B. Daniels: 11,970 | Dean Arp: 23,249 (I) |
|
| 70 | Lois Bohnsack: 7,789 | Patricia Hurley: 24,856 (I) |
|
| 71 | Evelyn Terry (I) |
No candidate | |
| 72 | Edward Hanes, Jr. (I) |
No candidate | |
| 73 | No candidate | Lee Zachary (I) |
|
| 74 | Marilynn Baker: 15,626 | Debra Conrad: 27,209 (I) |
|
| 75 | No candidate | Donny C. Lambeth (I) |
|
| 76 | No candidate | Carl Ford (I) |
|
| 77 | No candidate | Harry Warren (I) |
|
| 78 | Bill McCaskill: 7,579 | Allen McNeill: 27,040 (I) |
|
| 79 | No candidate | Julia Howard (I) |
|
| 80 | No candidate | Sam Watford (I) |
|
| 81 | Andy Hedrick: 11,438 | Larry Potts: 24,379 |
|
| 82 | Earle Schecter: 17,900 | Larry G. Pittman: 24,636 (I) |
|
| 83 | Jeremy Hachen: 13,407 | Linda Johnson: 22,927 (I) |
|
| 84 | John Wayne Kahl: 11,266 | Rena W. Turner: 25,414 (I) |
|
| 85 | No candidate | Josh Dobson (I) |
|
| 86 | Tim Barnsback: 12,766 | Hugh Blackwell: 21,226 (I) |
|
| 87 | No candidate | Destin Hall |
|
| 88 | Mary Belk: 21,754 |
Rob Bryan: 21,286 (I) | |
| 89 | No candidate | Mitchell Setzer (I) |
|
| 90 | Vera Smith Reynolds: 8,641 | Sarah Stevens: 23,678 (I) |
|
| 91 | Eugene Russell: 12,430 | Kyle Hall: 24,639 (I) |
|
| 92 | Chaz Beasley: 22,941 |
Beth Danae Caulfield: 19,246 | |
| 93 | Sue Counts: 19,433 | Jonathan Jordan: 21,910 (I) |
|
| 94 | Michael T. Lentz: 8,372 | Jeffrey Elmore: 24,467 (I) |
|
| 95 | No candidate | John Fraley (I) |
|
| 96 | No candidate | Jay Adams (I) |
|
| 97 | No candidate | Jason Saine (I) |
|
| 98 | No candidate | John Bradford: 25,428 (I) |
Jane Campbell: 19,597 (Unaffiliated) |
| 99 | Rodney Moore (I) |
No candidate | |
| 100 | John Autry |
No candidate | |
| 101 | Beverly Earle: 27,476 (I) |
Justin Dunn: 8,691 | |
| 102 | Becky Carney (I) |
No candidate | |
| 103 | Rochelle Rivas: 16,922 | William Brawley: 21,702 (I) |
|
| 104 | Peter Noris: 19,952 | Andy Dulin: 24,700 |
|
| 105 | Connie Green-Johnson: 17,689 | Scott Stone: 21,853 (I) |
|
| 106 | Carla Cunningham (I) |
No candidate | |
| 107 | Kelly Alexander, Jr. (I) |
No candidate | |
| 108 | No candidate | John Torbett (I) |
|
| 109 | Susan Maxon: 13,755 | Dana Bumgardner: 21,687 (I) |
|
| 110 | No candidate | Kelly Hastings (I) |
|
| 111 | No candidate | Timothy K. Moore (I) |
|
| 112 | No candidate | David Rogers: 22,938 (I) |
Ben Edwards: 9,388 (Unaffiliated) |
| 113 | Maureen Mahan Copelof: 16,726 | Cody Henson: 26,848 |
|
| 114 | Susan Fisher (I) |
No candidate | |
| 115 | John Ager: 25,257 (I) |
Frank Moretz: 20,183 | |
| 116 | Brian Turner (I) |
No candidate | |
| 117 | No candidate | Charles McGrady (I) |
|
| 118 | Rhonda Cole Schandevel: 17,549 | Michele Presnell: 21,754 (I) |
|
| 119 | Joe Sam Queen: 17,480 (I) | Mike Clampitt: 17,757 |
|
| 120 | Randy Hogsed: 11,282 | Kevin Corbin: 29,047 |
|
Notes:
| |||
Primary election
Margins of victory
The average margin of victory for contested races in the North Carolina House of Representatives in 2016 was lower than the national average. Out of 120 races in the North Carolina House of Representatives in 2016, 63 were contested, meaning at least two candidates competed for that seat in the general election. The average margin of victory across these races was 24.5 percent. Across contested single-winner state legislative elections in 2016, the average margin of victory was 29.01 percent.[3]
| Republican candidates in the North Carolina House of Representatives saw larger margins of victory than Democratic candidates in 2016. Republicans won 74 races. In the 47 races where a winning Republican faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 25.2 percent. Democrats won 46 races in 2016. In the 16 races where a winning Democrat faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 22.4 percent. |
| More Republican candidates than Democratic candidates saw margins of victory that were less than 10 percentage points. 12 of the 63 contested races in 2016—19 percent—saw margins of victory that were 10 percent or less. Eight races saw margins of victory that were 5 percent or less. Republicans won seven races with margins of victory of 10 percent or less. |
North Carolina House of Representatives: 2016 Margins of Victory Less than 10 Percent District Winning Party Margin of Victory District 6 R 3.7 percent District 8 R 0.4 percent District 35 R 6.3 percent District 36 R 2.8 percent District 37 R 9.3 percent District 40 D 0.8 percent District 44 D 1.1 percent District 49 D 1.5 percent District 88 D 1.1 percent District 92 D 8.8 percent District 93 R 6.0 percent District 119 R 0.8 percent
| The average margin of victory for incumbents in the North Carolina House of Representatives who ran for re-election and won in 2016 was lower than the national average. 101 incumbents who ran for re-election in 2016 won. The average margin of victory for the 48 winning North Carolina House of Representatives incumbents who faced a challenger in 2016 was 27.3 percent. The average margin of victory for all winning incumbents in contested single-winner state legislative elections in 2016 was 31.8 percent. |
| Democratic incumbents in the North Carolina House of Representatives saw larger margins of victory than Republican incumbents. 39 Democratic incumbents won re-election. In the 12 races where a winning Democratic incumbent faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 28.9 percent. 62 Republican incumbents won re-election. In the 36 races where a winning Republican incumbent faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 26.8 percent. |
North Carolina House of Representatives: 2016 Margin of Victory Analysis Party Elections won Average margin of victory[4] Races with incumbent victories Average margin of victory for incumbents[4] Unopposed incumbents Unopposed races Percent unopposed Democratic 46 22.4 percent 39 28.9 percent 27 30 65.2 percent Republican 74 25.2 percent 62 26.8 percent 26 27 36.5 percent Total 120 24.5 percent 101 27.3 percent 53 57 47.5 percent
Click [show] on the tables below to see the margin of victory in North Carolina House of Representatives districts in 2016.
| North Carolina House of Representatives: 2016 Margin of Victory by District | ||
|---|---|---|
| District | Winning Party | Margin of Victory |
| District 1 | R | 34.9 percent |
| District 2 | R | 21.3 percent |
| District 3 | R | 29.6 percent |
| District 4 | R | Unopposed |
| District 5 | D | Unopposed |
| District 6 | R | 3.7 percent |
| District 7 | D | 35.6 percent |
| District 8 | R | 0.4 percent |
| District 9 | R | 14.7 percent |
| District 10 | R | 43.1 percent |
| District 11 | D | 28.9 percent |
| District 12 | D | Unopposed |
| District 13 | R | 41.7 percent |
| District 14 | R | Unopposed |
| District 15 | R | 39.2 percent |
| District 16 | R | 34.0 percent |
| District 17 | R | 32.9 percent |
| District 18 | D | 22.2 percent |
| District 19 | R | Unopposed |
| District 20 | R | Unopposed |
| District 21 | D | Unopposed |
| District 22 | D | Unopposed |
| District 23 | D | Unopposed |
| District 24 | D | Unopposed |
| District 25 | R | 36.2 percent |
| District 26 | R | 16.1 percent |
| District 27 | D | Unopposed |
| District 28 | R | 41.2 percent |
| District 29 | D | Unopposed |
| District 30 | D | 47.7 percent |
| District 31 | D | Unopposed |
| District 32 | D | Unopposed |
| District 33 | D | Unopposed |
| District 34 | D | 35.1 percent |
| District 35 | R | 6.3 percent |
| District 36 | R | 2.8 percent |
| District 37 | R | 9.3 percent |
| District 38 | D | 69.6 percent |
| District 39 | D | Unopposed |
| District 40 | D | 0.8 percent |
| District 41 | D | 14.0 percent |
| District 42 | D | Unopposed |
| District 43 | D | Unopposed |
| District 44 | D | 1.1 percent |
| District 45 | R | Unopposed |
| District 46 | R | 23.9 percent |
| District 47 | D | Unopposed |
| District 48 | D | Unopposed |
| District 49 | D | 1.5 percent |
| District 50 | D | 14.6 percent |
| District 51 | R | 11.3 percent |
| District 52 | R | Unopposed |
| District 53 | R | 21.3 percent |
| District 54 | D | 14.4 percent |
| District 55 | R | 20.8 percent |
| District 56 | D | Unopposed |
| District 57 | D | Unopposed |
| District 58 | D | Unopposed |
| District 59 | R | 20.7 percent |
| District 60 | D | Unopposed |
| District 61 | R | Unopposed |
| District 62 | R | Unopposed |
| District 63 | R | Unopposed |
| District 64 | R | Unopposed |
| District 65 | R | 20.8 percent |
| District 66 | D | Unopposed |
| District 67 | R | 25.5 percent |
| District 68 | R | Unopposed |
| District 69 | R | 32.0 percent |
| District 70 | R | 52.3 percent |
| District 71 | D | Unopposed |
| District 72 | D | Unopposed |
| District 73 | R | Unopposed |
| District 74 | R | 27.0 percent |
| District 75 | R | Unopposed |
| District 76 | R | Unopposed |
| District 77 | R | Unopposed |
| District 78 | R | 56.2 percent |
| District 79 | R | Unopposed |
| District 80 | R | Unopposed |
| District 81 | R | 36.1 percent |
| District 82 | R | 15.8 percent |
| District 83 | R | 26.2 percent |
| District 84 | R | 38.6 percent |
| District 85 | R | Unopposed |
| District 86 | R | 24.9 percent |
| District 87 | R | Unopposed |
| District 88 | D | 1.1 percent |
| District 89 | R | Unopposed |
| District 90 | R | 46.5 percent |
| District 91 | R | 32.9 percent |
| District 92 | D | 8.8 percent |
| District 93 | R | 6.0 percent |
| District 94 | R | 49.0 percent |
| District 95 | R | Unopposed |
| District 96 | R | Unopposed |
| District 97 | R | Unopposed |
| District 98 | R | 13.0 percent |
| District 99 | D | Unopposed |
| District 100 | D | Unopposed |
| District 101 | D | 51.9 percent |
| District 102 | D | Unopposed |
| District 103 | R | 12.4 percent |
| District 104 | R | 10.6 percent |
| District 105 | R | 10.5 percent |
| District 106 | D | Unopposed |
| District 107 | D | Unopposed |
| District 108 | R | Unopposed |
| District 109 | R | 22.4 percent |
| District 110 | R | Unopposed |
| District 111 | R | Unopposed |
| District 112 | R | 41.9 percent |
| District 113 | R | 23.2 percent |
| District 114 | D | Unopposed |
| District 115 | D | 11.2 percent |
| District 116 | D | Unopposed |
| District 117 | R | Unopposed |
| District 118 | R | 10.7 percent |
| District 119 | R | 0.8 percent |
| District 120 | R | 44.1 percent |
Competitiveness
Candidates unopposed by a major party
In 58 of the 120 districts that were up for election in 2016, there was only one major party candidate running for election. A total of 31 Democrats and 27 Republicans were guaranteed election barring unforeseen circumstances.
Two major party candidates faced off in the general election in 62 (51.7%) of the 120 districts up for election.
Primary challenges
Twenty-four incumbents faced primary competition on March 15. Thirteen incumbents did not seek re-election and another 83 incumbents advanced past the primary without opposition.
Retired incumbents
Fourteen incumbents did not run for re-election, while 107 ran for re-election. A list of those incumbents, 10 Republicans, three Democrats and one unaffiliated, can be found above.
Results from 2014
There were 6,057 seats in 87 chambers with elections in 2014. All three aspects of Ballotpedia's Competitiveness Index—the number of open seats, incumbents facing primary opposition, and general elections between partisan candidates—showed poor results compared to the prior election cycle. States with elections in 2014 held fewer general elections between partisan candidates. Additionally, fewer incumbents faced primary opposition and more incumbents ran for re-election than in recent years.
Since 2010, when the Competitiveness Index was established, there had not been an even-year election cycle to do statistically worse in any of the three categories. See the following chart for a breakdown of those scores between each year.
| Overall Competitiveness | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 2012 | 2014 | |
| Competitiveness Index | 36.2 | 35.8 | 31.4 |
| % Open Seats | 18.6% | 21.2% | 17.0% |
| % Incumbent with primary challenge | 22.7% | 24.6% | 20.1% |
| % Candidates with major party opposition | 67.3% | 61.7% | 57.0% |
The following table details North Carolina's rates for open seats, incumbents that faced primary challenges, and major party competition in the 2014 general election.
| General Assembly of North Carolina 2014 Competitiveness | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % Open Seats | % Incumbent with primary challenge | % Candidates with major party opposition | Competitiveness Index | Overall rank |
| 8.2% | 18.0% | 51.8% | 26 | 31 |
Historical context
Uncontested elections: In 2014, 32.8 percent of Americans lived in states with an uncontested state senate election. Similarly, 40.4 percent of Americans lived in states with uncontested house elections. Primary elections were uncontested even more frequently, with 61 percent of people living in states with no contested primaries. Uncontested elections often occur in locations that are so politically one-sided that the result of an election would be a foregone conclusion regardless of whether it was contested or not.
Open seats: In most cases, an incumbent will run for re-election, which decreases the number of open seats available. In 2014, 83 percent of the 6,057 seats up for election saw the incumbent running for re-election. The states that impose term limits on their legislatures typically see a higher percentage of open seats in a given year because a portion of incumbents in each election are forced to leave office. Overall, the number of open seats decreased from 2012 to 2014, dropping from 21.2 percent in 2012 to 17.0 percent in 2014.
Incumbent win rates: Ballotpedia's competitiveness analysis of elections between 1972 and 2014 documented the high propensity for incumbents to win re-election in state legislative elections. In fact, since 1972, the win rate for incumbents had not dropped below 90 percent—with the exception of 1974, when 88 percent of incumbents were re-elected to their seats. Perhaps most importantly, the win rate for incumbents generally increased over time. In 2014, 96.5 percent of incumbents were able to retain their seats. Common convention holds that incumbents are able to leverage their office to maintain their seat. However, the high incumbent win rate may actually be a result of incumbents being more likely to hold seats in districts that are considered safe for their party.
Marginal primaries: Often, competitiveness is measured by examining the rate of elections that have been won by amounts that are considered marginal (5 percent or less). During the 2014 election, 90.1 percent of primary and general election races were won by margins higher than 5 percent. Interestingly, it is usually the case that only one of the two races—primary or general—will be competitive at a time. This means that if a district's general election is competitive, typically one or more of the district's primaries were won by more than 5 percent. The reverse is also true: If a district sees a competitive primary, it is unlikely that the general election for that district will be won by less than 5 percent. Primaries often see very low voter turnout in comparison to general elections. In 2014, there were only 27 million voters for state legislative primaries, but approximately 107 million voters for the state legislative general elections.
Campaign contributions
The following chart shows how many candidates ran for State House in North Carolina in past years and the cumulative amount of campaign contributions in State House races, including contributions in both primary and general election contests.[5]
| North Carolina House of Representatives Donations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Candidates | Amount |
| 2014 | 228 | $19,837,922 |
| 2012 | 289 | $19,193,634 |
| 2010 | 268 | $17,309,735 |
| 2008 | 233 | $13,957,950 |
| 2006 | 220 | $15,241,489 |
State comparison
The map below shows the average contributions to 2014 candidates for state houses. The average contributions raised by state house candidates in 2014 was $59,983. North Carolina, at $87,008 per candidate, is ranked nine of 45 for state house chambers with the highest average contributions. Hover your mouse over a state to see the average campaign contributions for that state’s house candidates in 2014.[5][6]
Qualifications
Article 2, Section 7 of the North Carolina Constitution states: "Each Representative, at the time of his election, shall be a qualified voter of the State, and shall have resided in the district for which he is chosen for one year immediately preceding his election."
See also
- North Carolina House of Representatives
- North Carolina State Legislature
- State legislative elections, 2016
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The primary for U.S. congressional elections was rescheduled to June 7, 2016, following legal challenges to North Carolina's district maps. State races were unaffected.
- ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, "2016 Candidate Filing," accessed December 22, 2015
- ↑ This calculation excludes chambers that had elections where two or more members were elected in a race. These chambers are the Arizona House, the New Hampshire House, the North Dakota House, the South Dakota House, the Vermont House, the Vermont Senate, and the West Virginia House.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Excludes unopposed elections
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 followthemoney.org, "Contributions to candidates and committees in elections in North Carolina," accessed July 28, 2015
- ↑ This map relies on data collected in July 2015.
