On Tuesday, former President Donald Trump was elected the 47th president of the United States, projected to win with 277 Electoral College votes. Wisconsin was called for the Trump column just after 5:30 am on Wednesday morning, putting Trump over the 270 vote threshold.  

Trump’s victory became clear when North Carolina’s 16 Electoral College votes went to Trump Tuesday evening, followed by Pennsylvania and Georgia.

Results are not official in North Carolina until after the votes are certified by the North Carolina State Board of Election through a canvass following the election. Military and overseas absentee ballots, as well as provisional votes, will be added to the results during the canvass period after election night. In every county, the public canvass meeting when the results are certified is 10 days after Election Day. For details on the canvass process visit the State Board of Elections website.

Also under state law, in a nonstatewide “a candidate shall have the right to demand a recount of the votes if the difference between the votes for that candidate and the votes for a prevailing candidate is not more than one percent (1%) of the total votes cast in the ballot item… The demand for a recount must be made in writing and must be received by the county board of elections by 5:00 P.M. on the first business day after the canvass.”

In a statewide race the recount threshold is less that one have of one percent, or 10,000 votes, whichever is less.

In the unofficial results posted on the NCSBE dashboard, Democrat Josh Stein won the governor’s race by nearly 15 percentage points, with Democrat Rachel Hunt leading the race for lieutenant governor with 49..4% over Republican Hal Weatherman’s 47.7% and Democrat Jeff Jackson leading for North Carolina Attorney General with 51.3% to Republican Dan Bishop’s 48.6%.

The Congressional District 1 race between incumbent Democrat Don Davis and Republican challenger Laurie Buckhout remains too close to call, with Davis leading 49.4% to Buckhout’s 47.9%.

Results also indicate that Republicans will hold onto the supermajority in the North Carolina Senate but could fall short of the super majority in the North Carolina House. The results are very close in some races though, and several could head to a recount.

“I can confidently say Republicans will retain a supermajority in the Senate and will hold a strong majority in the House,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger. “I’m thankful for the men and women who put their names forward and ran for office. Senate Republicans had an incredible slate of candidates and they’re going to represent their constituents well. Congratulations are also in order for House Speaker Tim Moore and Rules Chairman Destin Hall on their successes tonight.”

In the race for the only seat on the ballot for the North Carolina Supreme Court, Republican Jefferson Griffin is ahead of Democrat Allison Riggs by just over 10,000 votes, which could also go to a recount.

The Constitutional Amendment putting citizen-only voting in the state Constitution passed easily with 77.59% of the vote.

More in-depth coverage of each of these contests will be coming on Carolina Journal throughout the day and week.