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North Carolina State Senate District 22

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North Carolina State Senate District 22
Incumbent
Assumed office: January 1, 2025

North Carolina State Senate District 22 is represented by Sophia Chitlik (D).

As of the 2020 Census, North Carolina state senators represented an average of 209,079 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 191,316 residents.

About the office

Members of the North Carolina State Senate serve two-year terms and are not subject to term limits. North Carolina legislators assume office on January 1 the year after their election.[1][2]

Qualifications

See also: State legislature candidate requirements by state

Article 2, Section 6 of the North Carolina Constitution states:[3]

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.[4]


Salaries

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries
State legislative salaries, 2024[5]
SalaryPer diem
$13,951/year$104/day

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state legislatures

If there is a vacancy in the General Assembly of North Carolina, the governor is responsible for appointing a replacement.[6][7]

When making an appointment, the governor must make a decision from a list of recommended candidates submitted by the political party committee that last held the vacant seat.[8] The appointment must be made within seven days of receiving a list of recommended candidates.[7] The person selected to the seat serves for the remainder of the unfilled term.[7]

DocumentIcon.jpg See sources: North Carolina Const. Art. 2, Sec. 10 and North Carolina Gen. Stat. § 163-11


District map

Redistricting

See also: Redistricting in North Carolina

In North Carolina, the state legislature is responsible for drawing both congressional and state legislative district lines. District maps cannot be vetoed by the governor. State legislative redistricting must take place in the first regular legislative session following the United States Census. There are no explicit deadlines in place for congressional redistricting.[9]

State law establishes the following requirements for state legislative districts:[9]

  • Districts must be contiguous and compact.
  • Districts "must cross county lines as little as possible." If counties are grouped together, the group should include as few counties as possible.
  • Communities of interest should be taken into account.

There are no similar restrictions in place regarding congressional districts.[9]

2020-2023

See also: Redistricting in North Carolina after the 2020 census

On October 25, 2023, the North Carolina General Assembly adopted new legislative district boundaries.[10] 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.[11] 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.[12] All four votes were strictly along party lines with all votes in favor by Republicans and all votes against by Democrats.[13][14][15][16] 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."[17]

The state redrew its district boundaries after the state supreme court overturned its 2022 decision that North Carolina's enacted congressional and legislative maps were unconstitutional due to partisan gerrymandering.

As a result of state supreme court elections in 2022, the court flipped from a 4-3 Democratic majority to a 5-2 Republican majority. In its ruling, the court said, "we hold that partisan gerrymandering claims present a political question that is nonjusticiable under the North Carolina Constitution. Accordingly, the decision of this Court in Harper I is overruled. We affirm the three judge panel’s 11 January 2022 Judgment concluding, inter alia, that partisan gerrymandering claims are nonjusticiable, political questions and dismissing all of plaintiffs’ claims with prejudice."Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; invalid names, e.g. too many

Below are the maps in effect before and after the 2020 redistricting cycle. The map on the right was in effect for North Carolina’s 2024 state legislative elections.

Below are the maps in effect before and after the 2020 redistricting cycle. The map on the right was in effect for North Carolina’s 2024 state legislative elections.

Below are the maps in effect before and after the 2020 redistricting cycle. The map on the right was in effect for North Carolina’s 2024 state legislative elections.

North Carolina State Senate District 22
before 2020 redistricting cycle

Click a district to compare boundaries.

North Carolina State Senate District 22
after 2020 redistricting cycle

Click a district to compare boundaries.

Elections

2024

See also: North Carolina State Senate elections, 2024

General election

General election for North Carolina State Senate District 22

Sophia Chitlik defeated Ray Ubinger in the general election for North Carolina State Senate District 22 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Sophia Chitlik
Sophia Chitlik (D) Candidate Connection
 
86.0
 
83,844
Ray Ubinger (L)
 
14.0
 
13,674

Total votes: 97,518
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22

Sophia Chitlik defeated incumbent Mike Woodard in the Democratic primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22 on March 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Sophia Chitlik
Sophia Chitlik Candidate Connection
 
57.6
 
17,270
Image of Mike Woodard
Mike Woodard
 
42.4
 
12,719

Total votes: 29,989
Candidate Connection = 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.

Libertarian primary election

The Libertarian primary election was canceled. Ray Ubinger advanced from the Libertarian primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22.

2022

See also: North Carolina State Senate elections, 2022

General election

General election for North Carolina State Senate District 22

Incumbent Mike Woodard defeated Larry Coleman and Ray Ubinger in the general election for North Carolina State Senate District 22 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mike Woodard
Mike Woodard (D)
 
78.4
 
60,402
Image of Larry Coleman
Larry Coleman (R) Candidate Connection
 
19.6
 
15,070
Ray Ubinger (L)
 
2.0
 
1,543

Total votes: 77,015
Candidate Connection = 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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Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Mike Woodard advanced from the Democratic primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22

Larry Coleman defeated John Tarantino in the Republican primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22 on May 17, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Larry Coleman
Larry Coleman Candidate Connection
 
68.6
 
3,189
Image of John Tarantino
John Tarantino
 
31.4
 
1,463

Total votes: 4,652
Candidate Connection = 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.

Libertarian primary election

The Libertarian primary election was canceled. Ray Ubinger advanced from the Libertarian primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22.

2020

See also: North Carolina State Senate elections, 2020

General election

General election for North Carolina State Senate District 22

Incumbent Mike Woodard defeated Rick Padgett and Ray Ubinger in the general election for North Carolina State Senate District 22 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mike Woodard
Mike Woodard (D)
 
58.4
 
60,402
Rick Padgett (R) Candidate Connection
 
38.5
 
39,792
Ray Ubinger (L)
 
3.1
 
3,175

Total votes: 103,369
Candidate Connection = 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.

Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Mike Woodard advanced from the Democratic primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Rick Padgett advanced from the Republican primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22.

Libertarian primary election

The Libertarian primary election was canceled. Ray Ubinger advanced from the Libertarian primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22.

2018

See also: North Carolina State Senate elections, 2018

General election

General election for North Carolina State Senate District 22

Incumbent Mike Woodard defeated Rick Padgett and Ray Ubinger in the general election for North Carolina State Senate District 22 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mike Woodard
Mike Woodard (D)
 
61.8
 
46,153
Rick Padgett (R)
 
36.1
 
26,989
Ray Ubinger (L)
 
2.0
 
1,527

Total votes: 74,669
Candidate Connection = 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.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22

Incumbent Mike Woodard advanced from the Democratic primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22 on May 8, 2018.

Candidate
Image of Mike Woodard
Mike Woodard

Candidate Connection = 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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Republican primary election

Republican primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22

Rick Padgett advanced from the Republican primary for North Carolina State Senate District 22 on May 8, 2018.


Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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2016

See also: North Carolina State Senate elections, 2016

Elections for the North Carolina State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election was held on March 15, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016.[18] The candidate filing deadline was December 21, 2015.[19]

Incumbent Mike Woodard defeated T. Greg Doucette in the North Carolina State Senate District 22 general election.[20][21]

North Carolina State Senate, District 22 General Election, 2016
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Mike Woodard Incumbent 65.58% 74,693
     Republican T. Greg Doucette 34.42% 39,198
Total Votes 113,891
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections


Incumbent Mike Woodard ran unopposed in the North Carolina State Senate District 22 Democratic primary.[22][23]

North Carolina State Senate, District 22 Democratic Primary, 2016
Party Candidate
    Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Mike Woodard Incumbent (unopposed)


T. Greg Doucette ran unopposed in the North Carolina State Senate District 22 Republican primary.[24][25]

North Carolina State Senate, District 22 Republican Primary, 2016
Party Candidate
    Republican Green check mark transparent.png T. Greg Doucette  (unopposed)


2014

See also: North Carolina State Senate elections, 2014

Elections for the North Carolina State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on May 6, 2014. The general election took place on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was February 28, 2014. Incumbent Mike Woodard was unopposed in the Democratic primary, while Milton Holmes defeated Herman Joubert in the Republican primary. Holmes was disqualified from the race on June 17, 2014, after the board of elections determined that Holmes did not live in the district. Woodard defeated Joubert in the general election.[26][27]

North Carolina State Senate, District 22 General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngMike Woodard Incumbent 67.1% 47,978
     Republican Herman Joubert 32.9% 23,491
Total Votes 71,469
North Carolina State Senate, District 22 Republican Primary, 2014
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngMilton Holmes 52% 2,557
Herman Joubert 48% 2,363
Total Votes 4,920

2012

See also: North Carolina State Senate elections, 2012

Elections for the office of North Carolina State Senate consisted of a primary election on May 8, 2012, and a general election on November 6, 2012. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was February 29, 2012. Mike Woodard (D) defeated Milton Holmes (R) in the general election and Kerry Sutton in the Democratic primary. Holmes was unopposed in the Republican primary.[28][29][30]

North Carolina State Senate, District 22, General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngMike Woodard 65.4% 67,484
     Republican Milton Holmes 34.6% 35,730
Total Votes 103,214
North Carolina State Senate District 22 Democratic Primary, 2012
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngMike Woodard 67.8% 22,356
Kerry Sutton 32.2% 10,621
Total Votes 32,977

Campaign contributions

From 2000 to 2024, candidates for North Carolina State Senate District 22 raised a total of $2,259,615. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $61,071 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money

Campaign contributions, North Carolina State Senate District 22
Year Amount Candidates Average
2024 $373,054 3 $124,351
2022 $139,072 4 $34,768
2020 $125,495 2 $62,747
2018 $50,578 2 $25,289
2016 $83,838 2 $41,919
2014 $48,873 3 $16,291
2012 $79,367 3 $26,456
2010 $103,674 2 $51,837
2008 $142,761 3 $47,587
2006 $46,112 2 $23,056
2004 $667,575 2 $333,788
2002 $354,177 7 $50,597
2000 $45,040 2 $22,520
Total $2,259,615 37 $61,071


See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. North Carolina Constitution, "Article II, Section 9," accessed February 12, 2021
  2. Confirmed via email with the North Carolina Legislature on July 7, 2011
  3. North Carolina General Assembly, "North Carolina State Constitution," accessed May 23, 2025
  4. Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  5. National Conference of State Legislatures, "2024 Legislator Compensation," August 21, 2024
  6. General Assembly of North Carolina, "North Carolina Constitution," accessed February 12, 2021 (Article II, Section 10)
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 General Assembly of North Carolina, "North Carolina General Statutes," accessed February 12, 2021 (Statute 163-11(a), NC General Statutes)
  8. General Assembly of North Carolina, "North Carolina General Statutes," accessed February 12, 2021 (Statute 163-11(b-d), NC General Statutes)
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 All About Redistricting, "North Carolina," accessed April 20, 2015
  10. The Carolina Journal, "New state House, Senate, and congressional maps finalized," October 25, 2023
  11. North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Bill 758 / SL 2023-146," accessed October 26, 2023
  12. North Caroliina General Assembly, "House Bill 898 / SL 2023-149," accessed October 26, 2023
  13. North Carolina General Assembly, "House Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #614," accessed October 26, 2023
  14. North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #499," accessed October 26, 2023
  15. North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #504," accessed October 26, 2023
  16. North Caroliina General Assembly, "House Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #604," accessed October 26, 2023
  17. WUNC, "New district maps show signs of GOP partisan gerrymandering," October 24, 2023
  18. 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.
  19. North Carolina State Board of Elections, "2016 Candidate Filing," archived January 19, 2016
  20. North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Candidate Listing," accessed August 23, 2016
  21. North Carolina State Board of Elections, "2016 General Election results lookup," accessd December 21, 2016
  22. North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Candidate Listing," accessed January 4, 2016
  23. North Carolina State Board of Elections, "03/15/2016 Official primary results - Statewide," March 15, 2016
  24. North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Candidate Listing," accessed January 4, 2016
  25. North Carolina State Board of Elections, "03/15/2016 Official primary results - Statewide," March 15, 2016
  26. North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Primary Candidate List Grouped by Contest," accessed March 7, 2014
  27. North Carolina State Board of Elections, "General Election Candidate List Grouped by Contest," accessed August 12, 2014
  28. North Carolina State Board of Elections, "2012 Official General Election Results," accessed December 5, 2013
  29. North Carolina State Board of Elections, "2012 Official Primary Election Results," accessed December 5, 2013
  30. North Carolina Board of Elections, "Candidate lists," accessed March 5, 2012


Current members of the North Carolina State Senate
Leadership
Minority Leader:Sydney Batch
Senators
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
District 6
District 7
District 8
District 9
District 10
District 11
District 12
District 13
District 14
Dan Blue (D)
District 15
District 16
District 17
District 18
District 19
District 20
District 21
District 22
District 23
District 24
District 25
Amy Galey (R)
District 26
District 27
District 28
District 29
District 30
District 31
District 32
Paul Lowe (D)
District 33
Carl Ford (R)
District 34
District 35
District 36
District 37
District 38
District 39
District 40
District 41
District 42
District 43
District 44
District 45
District 46
District 47
District 48
District 49
District 50
Republican Party (30)
Democratic Party (20)