North Carolina House of Representatives elections, 2026
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←2024 |
| 2026 North Carolina House Election |
|---|
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| Election info |
Seats up: 120 |
| Election results by year |
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Elections for theNorth Carolina House of Representatives will take place in 2026. The general election is onNovember 3, 2026.
TheNorth Carolina House of Representatives is one of 88 state legislative chambers with elections in2026. There are 99 chambers throughout the country.
Party control
| Party | As of November 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 48 | |
| Republican Party | 71 | |
| Other | 0 | |
| Vacancies | 1 | |
| Total | 120 | |
Candidates
Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia definesofficial candidates as people who:
- Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
- Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies
Primary
Democratic
RepublicanGeneral election
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate ConnectionVoting information
- See also:Voting in North Carolina
Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.
Competitiveness
This section will be updated with information about the competitiveness of state legislative elections in North Carolina. For more information about Ballotpedia's Competitiveness Analysis of state legislative elections, pleaseclick here.
Open seats
The table below shows the number and percentage of open seats in the North Carolina House from 2010 to 2026.[1] It will be updated as information becomes available following the state’s candidate filing deadline.
| Open Seats in North Carolina House of Representatives elections: 2010 - 2026 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Total seats | Open seats | Seats with incumbents running for re-election |
| 2026 | 120 | TBD | TBD |
| 2024 | 120 | 15 (13 percent) | 105 (87 percent) |
| 2022 | 120 | 20 (17 percent) | 100 (83 percent) |
| 2020 | 120 | 15 (13 percent) | 105 (87 percent) |
| 2018 | 120 | 11 (9 percent) | 109 (91 percent) |
| 2016 | 120 | 14 (12 percent) | 106 (88 percent) |
| 2014 | 120 | 9 (8 percent) | 111 (92 percent) |
| 2012 | 120 | 33 (28 percent) | 87 (72 percent) |
| 2010 | 120 | 10 (8 percent) | 110 (92 percent) |
Process to become a candidate
For partisan candidates
See statutes:Chapter 163, Article 10, Section 106 of the North Carolina General Statutes
A partisan candidate must be registered as an affiliate of the party with which he or she intends to campaign. A partisan candidate must also do the following:[2]
- file a notice of candidacy with the appropriate board of elections (state or county-level)
- file a felony conviction disclosure form
- provide for payment of required filing fees
Filing fees for primary elections are established byChapter 163, Article 10, Section 107, of the North Carolina General Statutes. Filing fees formulas are summarized in the table below.[3]
| Filing fees | |
|---|---|
| Office | How the fee is determined |
| Governor | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| Lieutenant governor | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| State executive offices | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| United States Senator | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| United States Representative | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| State senator | 1% of the office's annual salary |
| State representative | 1% of the office's annual salary |
For independent candidates
See statutes:Chapter 163, Article 11, Section 122 of the North Carolina General Statutes
An unaffiliated candidate must file the same forms and pay the same filing fees as partisan candidates. In addition, the candidate must petition to appear on the ballot. Signature requirements are as follows (additional petition requirements are discussedbelow).[4][5]
| Signature requirements for independent candidates | |
|---|---|
| Office | Signature requirement formula |
| Governor, United States Senator, and other statewide offices | 1.5% of the total number of voters who voted in the most recent general election for governor (must include at least 200 signatures from each of three congressional districts) |
| United States Representative | 1.5% of the total number of registered voters in the district as of January 1 of the election year |
| State legislative seats (including those that cover more than one county) | 4% of the total number of registered voters in the district as of January 1 of the election year |
For write-in candidates
See statutes:Chapter 163, Article 11, Section 123 of the North Carolina General Statutes
To be certified, a write-in candidate must submit a declaration of intent and petition. Signature requirements are as follows (additional petition requirements are discussedbelow).[6]
| Signature requirements for write-in candidates | |
|---|---|
| Office | Required number of signatures |
| Governor, United States Senator, and other statewide offices | 500 |
| United States Representative; state house and state senate seats for districts that cover more than one county | 250 |
| State house and state senate seats for districts that lie within one county | If there are 5,000 or more registered voters in the district, 100 signatures; if fewer than 5,000, 1% of the number of registered voters |
Petitions are due on noon 90 days before the general election.[7] Write-in candidates do not have to pay filing fees.[7]
Qualifications
Article 2, Section 7 of theNorth 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.
Salaries and per diem
| State legislative salaries, 2024[8] | |
|---|---|
| Salary | Per diem |
| $13,951/year | $104/day |
When sworn in
North Carolina legislators assume office on January 1 the year after their election.[9]
North Carolina political history
Trifectas
Astate government trifecta is a term that describes single-party government, when one political party holds the governor's office and has majorities in both chambers of the legislature in a state government.
North Carolina Party Control: 1992-2025
Fourteen years of Democratic trifectas • Four years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
Presidential politics in North Carolina
2024
- See also:Presidential election, 2024
Presidential election in North Carolina, 2024
Candidate/Running mate | % | Popular votes | Electoral votes | ||
| ✔ |   | Donald Trump/J.D. Vance (R) | 50.9 | 2,898,423 | 16 |
  | Kamala D. Harris/Tim Walz (D) | 47.6 | 2,715,375 | 0 | |
  | Jill Stein/Butch Ware (G) | 0.4 | 24,762 | 0 | |
  | Chase Oliver/Mike ter Maat (L) | 0.4 | 22,125 | 0 | |
  | Cornel West/Melina Abdullah (Justice for All) | 0.2 | 12,099 | 0 | |
  | Randall Terry/Stephen E. Broden (Constitution Party) | 0.1 | 6,863 | 0 | |
| Other write-in votes | 0.3 | 19,494 | 0 | ||
 | There were no incumbents in this race The results have been certified. | Total votes: 5,699,141 |
2020
- See also:Presidential election, 2020
Presidential election in North Carolina, 2020
Candidate/Running mate | % | Popular votes | Electoral votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Donald Trump/Mike Pence (R) | 49.9 | 2,758,775 | 15 |
 | Joe Biden/Kamala D. Harris (D) | 48.6 | 2,684,292 | 0 | |
  | Jo Jorgensen/Spike Cohen (L) | 0.9 | 48,678 | 0 | |
  | Howie Hawkins/Angela Nicole Walker (G) | 0.2 | 12,195 | 0 | |
  | Don Blankenship/William Mohr (Constitution Party) | 0.1 | 7,549 | 0 | |
 | Jade Simmons (no running mate) (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 119 | 0 | |
| Other write-in votes | 0.2 | 13,196 | 0 | ||
| Incumbents arebolded and underlined The results have been certified. | Total votes: 5,524,804 |
2016
- See also:Presidential election, 2016
| U.S. presidential election, North Carolina, 2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Electoral votes | |
| Democratic | Hillary Clinton/Tim Kaine | 46.2% | 2,189,316 | 0 | |
| Republican |  Donald Trump/Mike Pence | 49.8% | 2,362,631 | 15 | |
| Libertarian | Gary Johnson/Bill Weld | 2.7% | 130,126 | 0 | |
| - | Write-in votes | 1.3% | 59,491 | 0 | |
| Total Votes | 4,741,564 | 15 | |||
| Election results via:North Carolina State Board of Elections | |||||
North Carolina presidential election results (1900-2024)
- 18Democratic wins
- 14Republican wins
| Year | 1900 | 1904 | 1908 | 1912 | 1916 | 1920 | 1924 | 1928 | 1932 | 1936 | 1940 | 1944 | 1948 | 1952 | 1956 | 1960 | 1964 | 1968 | 1972 | 1976 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1996 | 2000 | 2004 | 2008 | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winning Party | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | R | R | R | R |
Redistricting following 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 thestate Senate by a vote of 28-17 and theState House by a vote of 63-40.[11] The legislation adopting the new House districts passed thestate Senate by a vote of 27-17 and theState 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]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑Ballotpedia defines a seat as open if the incumbent did not file to run for re-election or filed but withdrew and did not appear on any ballot for his or her seat. If the incumbent withdrew from or did not participate in the primary but later chose to seek re-election to his or her seat as a third party or independent candidate, the seat would not be counted as open. If the incumbent retired or ran for a different seat in the same chamber, his or her original seat would be counted as open unless another incumbent from the same chamber filed to run for that seat, in which case it would not be counted as open due to the presence of an incumbent.
- ↑North Carolina General Statutes, "Chapter 163, Article 10, Section 106," accessed April 28, 2025
- ↑North Carolina General Statutes, "Chapter 163, Article 10, Section 107," accessed April 28, 2025
- ↑North Carolina General Statutes, "Chapter 163, Article 11, Section 122," accessed April 28, 2025
- ↑General Assembly of North Carolina, "Senate Bill 656," accessed April 28, 2025
- ↑North Carolina General Statutes, "Chapter 163, Article 11, Section 123," accessed April 28, 2025
- ↑7.07.1North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Write-in Candidate Petitions," accessed April 28, 2025
- ↑National Conference of State Legislatures, "2024 Legislator Compensation," August 21, 2024
- ↑North Carolina Constitution, "Article II, Section 9," accessed February 12, 2021
- ↑The Carolina Journal, "New state House, Senate, and congressional maps finalized," October 25, 2023
- ↑North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Bill 758 / SL 2023-146," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑North Caroliina General Assembly, "House Bill 898 / SL 2023-149," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑North Carolina General Assembly, "House Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #614," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #499," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #504," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑North Caroliina General Assembly, "House Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #604," accessed October 26, 2023
- ↑WUNC, "New district maps show signs of GOP partisan gerrymandering," October 24, 2023
