2012 North Carolina Council of State election
Elections were held in North Carolina on November 6, 2012 to select the nine officers of the North Carolina Council of State. This election coincided with the U.S. presidential election, U.S. House elections, the gubernatorial election and the statewide judicial elections. Primary elections were held on May 8, 2012; for races in which no candidate received 40 percent of the vote in the primary, runoff elections were held on July 17.
The nine members of the North Carolina Council of State are statewide-elected officers serving four-year terms. In the 2012 elections, all incumbents who ran for new terms were re-elected, while the Governor and [Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina|Governor of North Carolina|Lieutenant Governor]'s seats were open following incumbent Bev Perdue's decision to retire, and Walter Dalton's decision to run for governor, respectively.
The partisan makeup of the Council of State changed from 8 Democrats and 2 Republicans before the election to 6 Democrats and 4 Republicans afterward, as Republicans flipped both the Governor and Lieutenant Governor.
Governor
Republican Pat McCrory was elected governor.Lieutenant governor
Republican Dan Forest was elected lieutenant governor.Attorney general
Roy Cooper, the Democratic incumbent attorney general, ran for re-election unopposed.Secretary of State
Democratic primary
- Elaine Marshall, the Democratic incumbent Secretary of State, ran for re-election.
Republican primary
- Michael Beitler, business professor; Libertarian nominee for US Senator in 2010
- A.J. Daoud, business owner
- Kenn Gardner, former Wake County commissioner
- Ed Goodwin, Chowan County commissioner, retired Naval Criminal Investigative Service agent
Primary results
As no candidate received 40 percent of the vote, state law allows the runner-up to request a second primary. Gardner requested a runoff.State Auditor
Democratic primary
- Beth A. Wood, the Democratic incumbent State Auditor, ran for re-election.
Republican primary
- Joseph Hank DeBragga, auditor for North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources
- Greg Dority, three-time congressional candidate, Beaufort County Republican Party chairman
- Debra Goldman, Wake County School Board member
- Fern Shubert, former state senator, former state representative, certified public accountant
- Rudy Wright, Mayor of Hickory, former certified public accountant
Primary results
As the runner-up, Dority chose not to request a runoff, making Goldman the nominee.State Treasurer
Democratic primary
- Janet Cowell, the Democratic incumbent State Treasurer, ran for re-election.
- Ron Elmer, investment consultant
Republican primary
- Frank Roche, talk radio host
- Steve Royal, certified public accountant
Superintendent of Public Instruction
Democratic primary
- June Atkinson, the Democratic incumbent Superintendent, ran for re-election.
Republican primary
- Richard Alexander, South Carolina teacher and former small business owner
- Mark Crawford, former state representative
- Ray Martin, teacher
- David Scholl, businessman and Union County School Board member
- John Tedesco, Wake County School Board member
Primary results
As the runner-up, Alexander requested a runoff.Commissioner of Agriculture
Republican primary
- Bill McManus, real estate investor, former attorney and accountant, former Democratic member of Massachusetts House of Representatives
- Steve Troxler, the Republican incumbent Commissioner, ran for re-election.
Democratic primary
- Scott Bryant, farmer and former law enforcement officer
- Walter Smith, farmer, former USDA official, former mayor of Boonville
Commissioner of Labor
Republican primary
- Cherie Berry, the Republican incumbent Commissioner, ran for re-election.
Democratic primary
- John C. Brooks, former Commissioner of Labor
- Marlowe Foster, public affairs director for Pfizer, former Winston-Salem State University official
- Ty Richardson, 2008 candidate
Primary results
As the runner-up, Foster requested a runoff.Commissioner of Insurance
Democratic primary
- Wayne Goodwin, the Democratic incumbent Commissioner, ran for re-election.
Republican primary
- Mike Causey, former lobbyist
- James McCall, insurance agent
- Richard T. Morgan, former state representative