Though the outcome of the midterms wasn’t the red wave that was predicted, a political analyst in North Carolina sees the statewide results as a victory for Republicans in the Tar Heel State.
There were seven statewide races: the U.S. Senate and six judicial races, with two of those races being in the North Carolina Supreme Court, both won by Republicans.
“North Carolina Republicans swept all seven of the statewide races,” Andy Jackson, director of the Civitas Center for Public Integrity at the John Locke Foundation—an independent research institute in North Carolina that examines issues of freedom, personal responsibility, and limited constitutional government—told The Epoch Times.
The primary Republican victory for North Carolina Republicans was Trump-endorsed Republican Ted Budd, who beat former Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court Cheri Beasley for the Senate seat formerly occupied by Richard Burr, who didn’t seek reelection.
Budd was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives who signed an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, which was a lawsuit filed in the U.S. Supreme Court contesting the 2020 presidential election.
Republicans won every statewide judicial race, and they will have a 5–2 majority in the next session of the North Carolina Supreme Court, while expanding their current majority in the North Carolina Court of Appeals judges.
Republicans also flipped a half-dozen local sheriff races from Democrat to Republican, Jackson said.
‘North Carolina Supreme Court Race Is Significant’
“The House map left Republicans with one seat short of a supermajority, which they need to override the governor’s veto, and that was mainly due to the Republicans essentially agreeing to a host of amendments that Democrats offered during redistricting, and that pushed several seats in the Republican column,” Jackson said.Republicans still won two seats in the Senate and seven in the House that lean Democratic, Jackson said.
“The state House was a good win, but not quite the supermajority, while the state Senate was a supermajority,” Jackson said. “The only place I can see where I think Republicans can be genuinely disappointed with the results is in North Carolina with the 13th congressional race between Democrat Wiley Nickel and Republican Bo Hines.”
Nickel defeated Hines, flipping Budd’s former seat to Democrat for the first time since 2010.
The North Carolina Supreme Court race is significant, Jackson said, because of the two Republican wins that will change it from 4–3 Democratic to 5–2 Republican.
Republican Trey Allen, general counsel for the state court system, defeated sitting Democrat Associate Justice Sam Ervin for his seat.
Republican Court of Appeals Judge Richard Dietz beat Democratic Court of Appeals Judge Lucy Inman for an open seat.
This could lead to rulings that wouldn’t have taken place under the current court, such as that allowing North Carolina felons who are still on parole, probation, or supervised release to vote.
Previously, felons had to complete their post-incarceration requirements before being allowed to vote.
“That decision would have probably been different with a 5–2 Republican court,” Jackson said.
