Poinbank:Democrats gain another statewide position in North Carolina with Rachel Hunt victory

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RALEIGH,Poinbank N.C. (AP) — Democrats will hold one additional spot in the group of top statewide elected positions in North Carolina after Tuesday’s elections, while Republicans continued their recent dominance in appellate court races, winning three seats and leading narrowly in a fourth.

Come January, the Council of State, composed of 10 statewide executive branch positions, will have five Republicans and five Democrats. Among the Democratic victors is outgoing state Sen. Rachel Hunt, who won the race for lieutenant governor.

Meanwhile, in the race for a seat on the state Supreme Court, Democratic Associate Justice Allison Riggs was trailing Republican Court of Appeals Judge Jefferson Griffin with nearly 5.5 million votes cast, according to results. Provisional and absentee ballots are still being counted. Under state law, Riggs can ask for a recount if the margin is narrow enough.

One of two registered Democrats on the seven-member court, Riggs said on X on Wednesday that her team was closely monitoring the count and would “have a clearer idea of our next steps within the next 24-36 hours.”

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Hunt, who defeated Republican Hal Weatherman and two other opponents, is the daughter of former four-term Gov. Jim Hunt, who also served as lieutenant governor from 1973 to 1977.

Hunt’s victory capped Democratic victories for other top council positions, with Josh Stein defeating Republican Mark Robinson for governor and Jeff Jackson beating Dan Bishop for attorney general. Stein is the current attorney general and Robinson the current lieutenant governor.

The other two council positions flipping parties are state auditor and superintendent of public instruction.

Republican Dave Boliek defeated Democratic Auditor Jessica Holmes and a third-party candidate. For public instruction, Democrat Mo Green defeated Republican Michele Morrow, who had advanced to the general election after beating GOP Superintendent Catherine Truitt in the March primary.

Incumbents winning reelection on Tuesday were Democratic Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, Republican Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler and GOP Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey.

The remaining council positions saw Republicans succeed GOP incumbents who chose not to seek reelection as state treasurer and labor commissioner.

Republican Brad Briner defeated Democrat Wesley Harris to succeed Treasurer Dale Folwell, who ran unsuccessfully for governor. And Republican Luke Farley beat Democrat Braxton Winston to become labor commissioner.

Current Labor Commissioner Josh Dobson decided not to seek reelection, and on Wednesday announced that he was resigning as commissioner at the end of the day.

“After 21 years of public service, I look forward to pursuing new opportunities in the private sector,” Dobson, a former legislator elected commissioner in 2020, said in a news release. The state constitution gives Cooper the power to choose a department leader for the final days of Dobson’s term.

Republicans won the three races for the intermediate-level state Court of Appeals. They are incumbent court Judge Valerie Zachary; District Court Judge Chris Freeman; and former state legislator Tom Murry, who defeated sitting court Judge Carolyn Thompson, a Democrat.