2024 North Carolina lieutenant gubernatorial election explained

See also: 2024 United States gubernatorial elections and 2024 North Carolina Council of State elections.

The 2024 North Carolina lieutenant gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 2024, to elect the lieutenant governor of North Carolina. Democratic state senator Rachel Hunt won her first term in office, defeating Republican state official Hal Weatherman. She will succeed Republican incumbent Mark Robinson, who did not seek re-election in order to unsuccessfully run for governor.

In her party's primary, Hunt won the Democratic nomination with 70% of the vote over former state Senator Ben Clark and businessman Mark H. Robinson (no relation to the incumbent). Weatherman won the Republican nomination with 74% of the vote over Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O'Neil in a runoff after no candidate received over 30% of the vote in his party's primary. Hunt won the general election with 49.5% the vote to Weatherman's 47.6%, making her the first Democrat elected lieutenant governor of North Carolina since 2008.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Hal Weatherman, businessman and former chief of staff to Lieutenant Governor Dan Forest

Eliminated in runoff

• Jim O'Neill, Forsyth County District Attorney and nominee for attorney general in 2020^[1]

Eliminated in primary

• Deanna Ballard, former state senator from the 45th district^[2]
• Peter Boykin, political commentator and founder of Gays for Trump^[3]
• Rivera Douthit, evangelist
• Jeffrey Elmore, state representative from the 94th district^[4]
• Allen Mashburn, pastor^[5]
• Marlenis Hernandez Novoa, paramedic and firefighter^[6]
• Sam Page, Rockingham County sheriff^[7]
• Ernest T. Reeves, businessman and perennial candidate^[8]
• Seth Woodall, attorney^[9]

Withdrawn

• Jim Kee, former Greensboro city councilor^[10] (ran for state auditor)

Declined

• Mark Robinson, incumbent lieutenant governor (endorsed Weatherman, ran for governor)^[11]

Endorsements

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Deanna Ballard	Jeffrey Elmore	Jim O'Neill	Sam Page	Hal Weatherman	Seth Wooddall	Other	Undecided
High Point University	February 16–23, 2024	386 (LV)	± 6.0%	10%	11%		27%		13%	7%	11%	21%	–
Capen Analytics	February 21, 2024	12,580 (LV)	± 5.0%	15%	8%	16%	8%		21%		18%	15%	3%
Cygnal (R)	October 8–9, 2023	600 (LV)	± 3.9%	3%	1%	–		4%		4%	2%	2%		84%

Runoff results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Rachel Hunt, state senator from the 42nd district and daughter of former governor Jim Hunt^[12]

Eliminated in primary

• Ben Clark, former state senator from the 21st district and nominee for in 2022^[13]
• Mark H. Robinson, businessman (no relation to incumbent lieutenant governor Mark Robinson)^{[14] [15]}

Withdrawn

• Delmonte Crawford, civil rights activist (ran for mayor of Raleigh)^[16]
• Chris Rey, former mayor of Spring Lake and candidate for U.S. Senate in 2016^[13]
• Raymond Smith Jr., former state representative from the 21st district^[17] (ran for mayor of Goldsboro)^[18]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Ben Clark	Rachel Hunt	Mark H. Robinson	Undecided
High Point University	February 16–23, 2024	321 (LV)	± 6.0%	14%		61%	24%	–
Public Policy Polling (D)	December 15–16, 2023	556 (LV)	± 4.2%	5%		23%	6%		66%

Results

Libertarian Party

Withdrew after nomination

• Dee Watson, oncology researcher

Replacement nominee

• Shannon Bray, cybersecurity professional and nominee for U.S. Senate in 2020 and 2022^[19]

Constitution Party

Nominee

• Wayne Jones, central regional director for the North Carolina Constitution Party^[20]

General election

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Hal Weatherman (R)	Rachel Hunt (D)	Other	Undecided
ActiVote	October 8–26, 2024	400 (LV)	± 4.9%	50%	50%	–	–
Cygnal (R)	October 12–14, 2024	600 (LV)	± 4.0%	41%		43%	3%	13%
ActiVote	August 20 – September 22, 2024	400 (LV)	± 4.9%	50%	50%	–	–
Cygnal (R)	September 15–16, 2024	600 (LV)	± 4.0%	40%		42%	3%	15%
YouGov (D)	August 5–9, 2024	802 (RV)	± 3.9%	38%		40%	–	22%
Cygnal (R)	data-sort-value="2024-08-09"	August 4–5, 2024	600 (LV)	± 3.99%		38%	36%	5%	22%
Spry Strategies	data-sort-value="2024-06-18"	June 7–11, 2024	600 (LV)	± 4.0%	38%	38%	–	24%

Results

Notes

Partisan clients

External links

Official campaign websites

• Shannon Bray (L) for Lieutenant Governor
• Rachel Hunt (D) for Lieutenant Governor
• Hal Weatherman (R) for Lieutenant Governor

Notes and References

1. News: December 18, 2023 . Forsyth district attorney O'Neill enters crowded field for GOP lieutenant governor nomination. . Craver, Richard . December 15, 2023 .
2. News: 29 July 2023 . Adding to the candidate list, ex-North Carolina Sen. Ballard is running for lieutenant governor. . 24 July 2023 .
3. Web site: Skinner . Victor . She's on a path with the familiar family name . The Center Square . 18 June 2023 . May 3, 2023.
4. Web site: Mikkelson . Emily . Wilkes County representative Elmore announces run for lieutenant governor . FOX 8 . 18 June 2023 . May 9, 2023.
5. Web site: Doyle . Steve . State Sen. Rachel Hunt, daughter of former North Carolina Gov. Jim Hunt, announces run for lieutenant governor but not party . Wavy . 18 June 2023 . March 2, 2023.
6. News: . September 17, 2023 . Another Republican enters the race for lieutenant governor in North Carolina. Doyle . Steve . August 25, 2023 .
7. Web site: Stamps . Brayden . Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page officially announces run for North Carolina lieutenant governor . FOX 8 . 18 June 2023 . May 27, 2023.
8. Web site: 2024 primary candidate list by contest federal and state . North Carolina State Board of Elections . 2023-12-05. 2023-12-05.
9. News: The Carolina Journal . September 17, 2023 . Eden attorney latest to run on GOP ticket in 2024 NC lieutenant governor race. August 23, 2023 . Opeka . Theresa .
10. Web site: Hammer . John . 2023-02-15 . Jim Kee Announces Run For NC Lieutenant Governor In 2024 . 2023-02-16 . The Rhino Times of Greensboro . en-US.
11. Web site: Mikkelson . Emily . Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson announces run for governor at rainy Ace Speedway rally . FOX 8 . 18 June 2023 . April 22, 2023.
12. Web site: March 1, 2023 . N. Carolina Sen. Rachel Hunt to run for lieutenant governor . March 1, 2023 . AP News.
13. Web site: Woolverton . Paul . Former state Sen. Ben Clark running for NC lieutenant governor; Chris Rey drops out . The Fayetteville Observer . 18 June 2023 . May 24, 2023.
14. News: Mark Robinson is running for governor. A different Mark Robinson wants his job. . December 18, 2023 . December 15, 2023 . Fain . Travis .
15. Web site: Fain . Travis . Mark Robinson (no, not that one) preps long-shot campaign on a bus named Bessie Murphy . . August 16, 2024 . June 12, 2024.
16. News: October 12, 2023 . Raleigh clears way for heliport near North Hills over noise, gentrification concerns. Johnson . Anna . September 7, 2023 . Delmonte Crawford, who is running for Raleigh mayor in the 2024 election, also spoke against the change and said it contributes to gentrification when the area 'is already trying to rebuild from the pandemic.' . .
17. News: 'Perpetual campaign season:' For some NC candidates, 2024 races have already begun.
18. News: Goldsboro Daily News . November 17, 2023 . Alexander, Dave . Smith to Run for Mayor. March 9, 2023 .
19. Web site: 2024 General Candidate List By Contest Federal And State. North Carolina State Board of Elections.
20. News: . July 25, 2024 . Constitution Party candidates file for November ballot . Zehnder, Katherine . July 18, 2024.
21. Web site: Jacobson . Louis . 2024-11-01 . Updating the Down-Ballot Statewide Races . 2024-11-01 . Sabato's Crystal Ball . en-US.