State Sen. Don Davis has won the Democratic primary in North Carolina’s 1st Congressional District.
Davis easily defeated former State Sen. Erica Smith. Davis will face Republican Sandy Smith in a district that leans Democrat.
Sandy Smith has expressed certainty that the 2020 presidential election was stolen by President Joe Biden. She was also on-site at the U.S. Capitol during the insurrection on January 6th, 2021. The winner will replace retiring Rep. G.K. Butterfield.
Primaries — Democratic, Republican or both — were held in 13 of the 14 North Carolina U.S. House districts. Seven of the 11 incumbents seeking reelection faced challenges within their own party.
LGBTQ activist and local elected official Jasmine Beach-Ferrara won the Democratic nomination for a congressional seat in far western North Carolina.
Beach-Ferrara got the most votes among six candidates in the 11th Congressional District Democratic primary. She raised the most campaign money among all of the competitors.
She’ll face state Sen. Chuck Edwards in November. Edwards defeated incumbent Rep. Madison Cawthorn and six other GOP hopefuls. Cawthorn conceded the race.
Beach-Ferrara is a minister, Buncombe County commissioner and executive director of the Campaign for Southern Equality in Asheville. Her group helped pushed for same-sex marriage in North Carolina a decade ago.
Beach-Ferrara got in the race 14 months ago, criticizing at the time Cawthorn for his speech at the “Stop the Steal” rally just before the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
In the open 13th District, Trump-backed candidate Bo Hines will face state Sen. Wiley Nickel in November.
WUNC's Joe Jurney contributed to this report.
