The1984 North Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 1984. Democratic incumbentJim Hunt was unable to run for a third consecutive term under the North Carolina Constitution. He ran instead for the U.S. Senate againstJesse Helms and narrowlylost. Popular 9th District CongressmanJames G. Martin ran as the Republican gubernatorial nominee against Democratic Attorney GeneralRufus L. Edmisten, who defeated Hunt's Lt. Governor,James Green, among other candidates, in a hotly contested primary.
Martin won by a comfortable margin on Election Day thanks to the surprise endorsement of Green, and to PresidentRonald Reagan'scoattails (see also1984 United States presidential election). Martin became just the second Republican elected to the state's highest office in the 20th century. Hunt later served as North Carolina’s Governor again from 1993 to 2001.
An offhand remark by Edmisten during the 1984 campaign became part of the state's political lore. He was quoted as complaining about all thebarbecue pork he had to eat on the campaign trail, saying he could not eat anymore of "that damnable stuff", which is widely popular.[1] Edmisten later said he was joking.[2]
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