Endorsements: Our choices in NC’s Lt. Governor and auditor primary runoffs | Opinion
Due to jam-packed ballots in some Republican primaries, not all North Carolina primary races were decided back in March. Per state law, when no candidate receives 30% of the vote, the second-place finisher can request a runoff. Two Council of State races and one congressional race will be headed to a runoff on May 14. All three are Republican primaries.
Here are our recommendations in those races:
Lt. Governor
Eleven candidates sought the GOP nomination for lieutenant governor; now it’s down to two. They are longtime Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O’Neill and Hal Weatherman, who served as chief of staff to former North Carolina Lt. Gov. Dan Forest and to former U.S. Rep. Sue Myrick.
The lieutenant governor’s office comes with few powers and an exceedingly low profile. When the governor is of the opposing party, the post is further diminished. But the one clear appeal of the job is being in position to run for governor. The last two Republicans to serve as lieutenant governor, Forest and Mark Robinson, became their party’s gubernatorial nominee.
O’Neill, a four-term district attorney who lost a close race for state attorney general in 2020, is back in a statewide contest. He would bring years of law enforcement and political experience to the job and is clearly a gubernatorial candidate in waiting. Weatherman has experience as a political staffer and stresses his conservative cultural and religious views.
On his campaign website, Weatherman describes himself as “a principled limited government conservative — fiscal and social.” He supports North Carolina adopting a 6-week ‘fetal heartbeat’ abortion ban.
O’Neill is an experienced public servant and more interested in the law than culture wars. He also supports bringing more manufacturing jobs to the state, he wants to stem substance abuse that is the cause of much petty crime and he backs increasing state resources for treating mental illness. We recommend Jim O’Neill.
State Auditor
Six candidates sought the Republican nomination for state auditor in March’s primary, but just two will be on the runoff ballot in May. The winner will face Democrat Jessica Holmes, who was appointed to replace longtime auditor Beth Wood after her resignation last year.
The office uncovers waste and abuse of state tax dollars by auditing state agencies and private entities that receive taxpayer funds. March’s top vote-getter was Jack Clark, who works as a research assistant in the North Carolina General Assembly. Clark is a Certified Public Accountant and has experience as an auditor at large firms. He faces Dave Boliek, an attorney and former chair of the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees.
Clark is thoughtful and promises to bring a nonpartisan approach to the auditor’s office, pledging to hold both Democrats and Republicans accountable. He also brings relevant auditing experience that would be a clear asset to the role. We recommend Jack Clark.
13th Congressional District
Whoever wins the GOP nomination in this district recently gerrymandered to favor Republicans is almost certain to be heading to Congress after November’s general election. The incumbent, Democrat Wiley Nickel, is not seeking reelection. The newly drawn district takes in seven counties south, east and north of blue Wake County and includes sections of southeast and northern Wake County.
The GOP race opened as a cavalry charge of 14 candidates, but none gained the necessary 30% for an outright win. A runoff between the two top finishers was derailed when former President Donald Trump endorsed one of them, Brad Knott, a former federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Eastern North Carolina. Trump’s intrusion prompted Kelly Daughtry, a Johnston County lawyer who nearly won the primary, to suspend her campaign and announce her support for Knott.
Had Trump not squelched this race, we would have recommended Daughtry as the candidate best suited for the district. She will still be on the ballot and, despite Trump’s endorsement, voters will still have a choice.
