Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina
| North Carolina Lieutenant Governor | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Office Type: | Partisan |
| Office website: | Official Link |
| Compensation: | $146,421 |
| 2025 FY Budget: | $1,343,471 |
| Term limits: | Two consecutive terms |
| Structure | |
| Length of term: | Four years |
| Authority: | North Carolina Constitution, Article III, Section II |
| Selection Method: | Elected |
| Current Officeholder(s) | |
Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina Rachel Hunt | |
| Elections | |
| Next election: | November 7, 2028 |
| Last election: | November 5, 2024 |
| Other North Carolina Executive Offices | |
| Governor •Lieutenant Governor •Secretary of State •Attorney General •Treasurer •Auditor •Superintendent of Education •Agriculture Commissioner •Insurance Commissioner •Natural Resources Commissioner •Labor Commissioner •Public Service Commission | |
TheLieutenant Governor of North Carolina is an elected constitutional officer, the second ranking officer of the executive branch and the first officer in line to succeed theGovernor of North Carolina. The lieutenant governor ispopularly elected every four years by a plurality and is limited totwo consecutive terms in office.
Current officeholder
- See also:Current Lieutenant Governors
The current Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina isRachel Hunt (D). Hunt assumed office in 2025.
Authority
TheNorth Carolina Constitution establishes the office of lieutenant governor inArticle III, the Executive Department.
Under Article III, Section II:
The Governor and Lieutenant Governor shall be elected by the qualified voters of the State...[1] |
Qualifications
Candidates for the office of the lieutenant governor must be:[1]
- at least 30 years old
- a citizen of the United States for at least five years
- a resident ofNorth Carolina for at least two years
Elections
- See also:Gubernatorial election cycles by state
- See also:Election of lieutenant governors
UnderArticle III, Section 2 of theNorth Carolina Constitution, elects lieutenant governors in the presidential elections (e.g. 2020, 2024, 2028, and 2032). Legally, the lieutenant gubernatorial inauguration is always set for the first day in the January following an election. In recent practice, however, officers have waited until the first Saturday in January after the election to be sworn in.[1]
Term limits
Term limits for the lieutenant governor are laid out inArticle III, Section 2 of the North Carolina Constitution, which limits lieutenant governors to two consecutive terms.
North Carolina Constitution, Article III, Section 2-2:
| No person shall be eligible for election to the office of Governor or Lieutenant Governor unless, at the time of his election, he shall have attained the age of 30 years and shall have been a citizen of the United States for five years and a resident of this State for two years immediately preceding his election. No person elected to the office of Governor or Lieutenant Governor shall be eligible for election to more than two consecutive terms of the same office. |
2024
General election
General election for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina
Rachel Hunt defeatedHal Weatherman,Shannon Bray, andWayne Jones in the general election for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Rachel Hunt (D)  | 49.5 | 2,768,539 |
 | Hal Weatherman (R) | 47.6 | 2,663,183 | |
 | Shannon Bray (L) | 1.9 | 104,192 | |
 | Wayne Jones (Constitution Party) | 1.0 | 53,938 | |
| There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 5,589,852 | ||
| = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Jason Nicholson (Independent)
- Dee Watson (L)
Republican primary runoff election
Republican primary runoff for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina
Hal Weatherman defeatedJim O'Neill in the Republican primary runoff for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina on May 14, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Hal Weatherman | 74.3 | 96,600 |
 | Jim O'Neill | 25.7 | 33,448 | |
| There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 130,048 | ||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina
Rachel Hunt defeatedBen Clark andMark H. Robinson in the Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina on March 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Rachel Hunt | 70.4 | 477,196 |
 | Ben Clark | 16.5 | 111,836 | |
 | Mark H. Robinson | 13.2 | 89,247 | |
| There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 678,279 | ||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Chris Rey (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina
The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina on March 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Hal Weatherman | 19.6 | 181,818 |
| ✔ | | Jim O'Neill | 15.8 | 147,042 |
 | Deanna Ballard | 15.0 | 138,822 | |
 | Seth Woodall | 11.0 | 102,492 | |
 | Sam Page | 10.2 | 94,810 | |
 | Allen Mashburn | 9.0 | 83,550 | |
 | Jeffrey Elmore | 8.6 | 79,883 | |
 | Peter Boykin | 3.5 | 32,126 | |
 | Rivera Douthit | 2.5 | 23,398 | |
 | Ernest Reeves | 2.5 | 22,760 | |
 | Marlenis Hernandez Novoa | 2.3 | 21,404 | |
| There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 928,105 | ||
| = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Libertarian primary election
The Libertarian primary election was canceled.Dee Watson advanced from the Libertarian primary for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina.
2020
General election
General election for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina
Mark K. Robinson defeatedYvonne Lewis Holley in the general election for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Mark K. Robinson (R) | 51.6 | 2,800,656 |
 | Yvonne Lewis Holley (D) | 48.4 | 2,623,458 | |
| There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 5,424,114 | ||
| = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina
The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina on March 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Yvonne Lewis Holley | 26.6 | 309,274 |
 | Terry Van Duyn | 20.4 | 237,885 | |
 | Chaz Beasley | 18.9 | 219,503 | |
 | Allen Thomas Jr. | 18.8 | 219,229 | |
 | Bill Toole | 9.6 | 111,843 | |
| Ronald L. Newton | 5.7 | 65,970 | ||
| There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 1,163,704 | ||
| = candidate completed theBallotpedia 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 Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina
The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina on March 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Mark K. Robinson | 32.5 | 240,843 |
 | Andy Wells | 14.6 | 107,824 | |
 | Mark Johnson | 12.0 | 89,200 | |
| John Ritter | 11.5 | 85,023 | ||
 | Renee Ellmers | 6.8 | 50,526 | |
 | Greg Gebhardt | 6.8 | 50,474 | |
 | Deborah Cochran | 6.5 | 48,234 | |
 | Scott Stone | 6.5 | 48,193 | |
| Buddy Bengel | 2.8 | 20,395 | ||
| There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source | Total votes: 740,712 | ||
| = candidate completed theBallotpedia 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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Past elections
Vacancies
Details of vacancies are addressed underArticle III, Section 7.
Whenever the office of the lieutenant governor becomes vacant, the governor appoints a replacement. If the lieutenant gubernatorial term would expire the following January, then the appointee serves the remainder of the term. Otherwise, the appointee only serves as an acting lieutenant governor until the next legislative election that is more than 60 days away.
Duties
Thelieutenant governor's primary responsibility is to preside over theNorth Carolina Senate and cast tie-breaking votes. The lieutenant governor is a member of the North Carolina Council of State, the North Carolina Board of Education, the North Carolina Capitol Planning Commission, and the North Carolina Board of Community Colleges.[2]
The lieutenant governor is the first to succeed, either temporarily or permanently, when the governor is incapacitated.[2]
Divisions
Note:Ballotpedia's state executive officials project researches state official websites for information that describes the divisions (if any exist) of a state executive office. That information for the Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina has not yet been added. After extensive research we were unable to identify any relevant information on state official websites. If you have any additional information about this office for inclusion on this section and/or page, pleaseemail us.
State budget
The budget for the North Carolina Lieutenant Governor's office in Fiscal Year 2025 was $1,343,471.[3]
Compensation
- See also:Comparison of lieutenant gubernatorial salaries andCompensation of state executive officers
The lieutenant governor, along with the rest of North Carolina's elected executives, is entitled to a fixed salary in accordance with'rticle III, Section 9 of theNorth Carolina Constitution:
| The officers whose offices are established by this Article shall at stated periods receive the compensation and allowances prescribed by law, which shall not be diminished during the time for which they have been chosen. |
2023
In 2023, the officer's salary was $146,421, according to theCouncil of State Governments.[4]
2022
In 2022, the officer's salary was $146,421, according to theCouncil of State Governments.[5]
2021
In 2021, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $136,699, according to theCouncil of State Governments.[6]
2020
In 2020, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $133,365 according to theCouncil of State Governments.[7]
2019
In 2019, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $127,561 according to theCouncil of State Governments.[8]
2018
In 2018, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $127,561 according to theCouncil of State Governments.[9]
2017
In 2017, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $127,561 according to theCouncil of State Governments.[10]
2016
In 2016, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $125,676 according to theCouncil of State Governments.[11]
2015
In 2015, the lieutenant governor’s salary was increased to $125,676 according to theCouncil of State Governments.[12]
2014
In 2014, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $124,676 according to theCouncil of State Governments.[13]
2013
In 2013, the lieutenant governor was paid an estimated $124,676.[14]
2010
In 2010, the lieutenant governor was paid $123,198, the 11th highest lieutenant gubernatorial salary in America.[15]
Historical officeholders
Note:Ballotpedia's state executive officials project researches state official websites for chronological lists of historical officeholders; information for the Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina has not yet been added because the information was unavailable on the relevant state official websites, or we are currently in the process of formatting the list for this office. If you have any additional information about this office for inclusion on this section and/or page, pleaseemail us.
Recent news
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Contact information
310 N. Blount Street
Raleigh, NC 27601
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑1.01.11.2"North Carolina General Assembly", "North Carolina Constitution," accessed January 20, 2021
- ↑2.02.1State of North Carolina, "About the Office of the Lt. Governor," accessed January 20, 2021
- ↑North Carolina General Assembly, "House Bill 259," accessed December 6, 2023
- ↑Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2023 Table 4.11: Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," accessed January 21, 2025
- ↑Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2022 Table 4.11: Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," provided to Ballotpedia by CSG personnel
- ↑Issuu, "The Book of the States 2021," accessed September 28, 2022
- ↑Council of State Governments, "The Book of the States 2020," accessed January 20, 2021
- ↑Council of State Governments, "The Book of the States 2019," accessed January 20, 2021
- ↑Council of State Governments, "The Book of the States 2018," accessed January 20, 2021
- ↑Council of State Governments, "The Book of the States 2017," accessed January 20, 2021
- ↑Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries, 2016," accessed August 27, 2016
- ↑Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries, 2015," accessed August 27, 2016
- ↑Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," accessed December 3, 2014
- ↑Council of State Governments, "Table 4.11 Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," accessed January 31, 2014
- ↑Sunshine Review,
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