RALEIGH—House and Senate Democrats added to their majorities in the General Assembly last night, and House Speaker Jim Black held a seven-vote lead over Republican challenger Hal Jordan with provisional ballots yet to be counted.
Democrats improved their current 63 to 57 House majority to at least a 67 to 53 margin, with Black’s race still in limbo.
The state Senate majority will likely increase from a 29-21 advantage to a 31-19 margin. Two Senate races remained close, with Democrats slightly ahead in each contest.
Of the 170 seats in the General Assembly, Republicans won one seat from Democrats. Rep. Jean Preston took a Senate seat from a Democratic appointee, Pete Bland, in a highly competitive district.
In Congressional races only one incumbent in the North Carolina delegation lost: 11th District Rep. Charles Taylor, who will be replaced by Democrat Heath Shuler. However, 8th District Rep. Robin Hayes clung to a 468-vote lead over Democrat challenger Larry Kissell, who nearly swept to victory in a wave of national Democratic success.
In statewide judicial races, the end of partisan campaigns meant good news for Democrats. Of the six contested elections, Democrats won at least four, while they endorsed a Republican, Mark Martin, for one of the Supreme Court seats. Democrat Linda Stephens and Republican Donna Stroud were neck-and-neck for a Court of Appeals seat.
In the Triangle, voters approved a $970-million bond referendum for school construction. In the high-profile Durham County district attorney’s race, Mike Nifong won.
Carolina Journal‘s Mitch Kokai and Paul Chesser contributed to this report.