Twelve local victories - supported by more than a million dollars in independent expenditures by the State + Local Election Alliance - strengthen local election funding and voting protections in a pivotal presidential battleground.
RALEIGH — Pro-democracy county leaders swept to victory in 12 county commission races across North Carolina — defeating election deniers and foes of voting rights while strengthening a critical local defense for fair elections. The victories secure new pro-democracy majorities in Alamance, Forsyth, Lee, and New Hanover counties, a supermajority in Pitt County, and two pro-democracy seats on Watauga County’s previously all-Republican commission.
The winning candidates were supported through more than a million dollars in independent expenditures by the State + Local Election Alliance (SLEA), the only national organization focused on electing pro-democracy candidates to the state and local offices that decide how ballots are cast, counted, certified, and challenged. SLEA invested in these county races to build a pro-democracy firewall at the county level, where commissioners oversee funding for election staff, voting equipment, and polling locations. SLEA mobilized voters in North Carolina’s county commission races through mail, digital, and phone outreach.
The importance of county commission races for election administration rose in 2025, when the Republican-controlled legislature upended a century of state precedent to shift oversight of county election boards from Democratic Governor Josh Stein to Republican State Auditor Dave Boliek. Boliek has been open about his intentions to use this power for partisan gain.
“From Alamance to Watauga, voters soundly rejected politicians who spread election lies and put obstacles between people and the ballot box,” said Kim Rogers, president of the State + Local Election Alliance. “These county races don’t get presidential-level attention, but they deserve it. The commissioners elected tonight will decide whether local elections have the funding, staff, and polling places voters need in 2028. In a state that can decide the presidency, these are local victories with a national impact.”
SLEA-supported victories span six counties:
Alamance County: Air Force veteran Sean Ewing, pastor Ramona Allen, and educator Kourtney Royster won seats, flipping the commission to a pro-democracy majority and unseating Steve Carter, a local Tea Party leader who helped with organized challenges to voter eligibility in 2016 and promoted false claims about the 2020 election. This cycle’s results replace Carter and his allies with a new majority committed to protecting voting rights.
Forsyth County: Marsie West flipped a seat to secure a pro-democracy majority in the county that includes Winston-Salem. Her victory strengthens support for voting access in a rapidly diversifying county, where the Republican-controlled county election board recently attracted controversy by sharing voter information with federal immigration authorities.
Lee County: In this county named after Robert E. Lee, where Republicans redrew district lines in 2021 to target the commission’s first Black member, Robert Reives Sr. won his second post-redistricting term in a district designed to be impossible for him to win. Reives won alongside candidate Jamey Laudate, securing a pro-democracy majority on the commission.
New Hanover County: Incumbent Rob Zapple won re-election, and nurse and healthcare leader Dr. LeShonda Wallace flipped a seat, establishing a pro-democracy majority in the county that includes Wilmington. Their victories create an opportunity to resolve election-funding disputes and strengthen support for early voting.
Pitt County: Dennis McLawhorn and educator Rodney Harris won their races, securing a pro-democracy supermajority in the county that includes Greenville and East Carolina University.
Watauga County: Professor Adam Hege defeated conservative activist Rick Woods, who supported changes to county commission districts designed to undermine the voting power of local students. Meteorologist and former Commissioner Ray Russell also won, establishing a two-member pro-democracy contingent on a previously all-Republican commission. The victories give student voters and other residents new advocates in a county where partisan redistricting and voting access have been persistent flashpoints.
