
By Peter Vankevich
A special election for a state supreme court seat and several North Carolina U.S. Congressional seats, include the representative for Ocracoke, will be held tomorrow (Tuesday, June 7).
Voting will be from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 PM p.m. in the Ocracoke Volunteer Fire Department, 822 Irvin Garrish Hwy.
On Ocracoke, voters will choose nominees for the U.S. House of Representatives District 3.
This Congressional seat is currently held by Walter Jones. Vying with him for the Republican nomination are Taylor Griffin and Phil Law.
Registered Democrats will choose between David Allen Hurst and Ernest T. Reeves.
Unaffiliated voters have two choices: They can elect to vote in one of the two major party primaries (but only one), or they can choose a non-partisan ballot, which will include only the judicial race.
Voters will vote for one of the four state supreme court associate justice candidates. The two with most votes will appear on the November general election ballot.
Since many are unfamiliar with the judicial candidates, the Observer is providing some information on them.
From Ballotpedia:
One seat on the North Carolina Supreme Court joins four seats on the North Carolina Court of Appeals on the ballot.
The supreme court seat up for election is held by Justice Robert H. Edmunds Jr.
Prior to tomorrow’s primary, Edmunds was to have run in North Carolina’s first retention election under a 2015 law, which would have been part of the November general election. So, this seat had not been part of the March 15 primary.
However, a Wake County court struck down the retention law as unconstitutional, and the state supreme court upheld that ruling. Edmunds therefore faces a contested election in a new primary tomorrow.
Morgan and Robertson are considered to be Democrats, Edmunds a conservative and Faires, an independent.
The appeals court seats up for election are held by Judge Robert N. Hunter Jr., Judge Linda Stephens, Judge Richard Dietz, and Judge Valarie J. Zachary. Each judge elected to the court serves an eight-year term
The Outer Banks Voice has profiles on Robert H. Edmunds Jr. and Michael “Mike” Morgan.
The following is from the NC Board of Elections website.
For Ocracoke news, click here