Buckhout defeats Smith in 1st U.S. House District

Laurie Buckhout of Edenton defeated Sandy Smith of Nash County in their Republican primary race in the 1st U.S. House District on Tuesday.

In complete but unofficial totals, Buckhout defeated Smith by more than 4,400 votes. Buckhout garnered 33,789 votes, or 53.4%, to Smith’s 29,383 votes, or 46.5%, according to the N.C. Board of Elections. She defeated Smith in Greene County 949 to 715 votes, or 57%.

In a statement, Buckhout thanked voters of the 1st House District for her victory.

“I am honored you have selected me as your Republican nominee,” she said. “I would also like to commend Sandy Smith for a hard-fought campaign. I never thought this would be easy and she made me earn this victory tonight. She’s forced me to be a better candidate and I thank her.”

Buckhout will now face incumbent U.S. Rep. Don Davis, D-N.C., in the November election. Buckhout took direct aim at Davis in her statement.

“Here in North Carolina, Joe Biden and the Biden agenda have one name, and that’s Don Davis,” she said. “Davis has enabled Joe Biden’s failures. But I am ready and able to take on Don Davis to fight for working families in (the 1st District) by securing our borders, stopping Joe Biden’s reckless spending, and fighting for the America First Agenda that protects and promotes American jobs.”

In the only other local primary, Greene County voters helped Annette W. Turik win the Republican primary for N.C. District Court Judge District 9 Seat 6. The incumbent Turik defeated John Henry Turner III 11,520 votes to 4,112. In Greene County, she earned 1,077 to Hunter’s 403. She faces no opposition in November.

In statewide races, Greene voters mostly followed trends, with 85 percent of Democratic ballots going for President Joe Biden over a choice of no preference. Biden earned a total of 1,022 local votes.

Former president Donald Trump received 1,501 GOP ballots, or 87 percent, far outstripping his closest rival Nikki Haley, who received 193 votes or 11 percent.

Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, who won the GOP nod for governor in North Carolina, earned 80 percent of Greene County’s GOP votes, or 1,343. The Democratic nominee for governor, Attorney General Josh Stein, failed to carry Greene County. He earned 426 votes locally while Mike Morgan earned 512, or 44 percent.

County Democratic voters supported Rachel Hunt for lieutenant governor, while local Republican voters supported Jim O’Neill. Hunt won the nomination, but O’Niell lost to Hal Weatherman.

In other cases where local voters bucked statewide trends, more Democratic ballots went to attorney general candidate Santana Deberry than to nominee Jeff Jackson, and more GOP ballots went to State Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt, who lost to challenger Michele Morrow statewide.

Buckhout won her home county of Chowan by 892 votes, carrying 74% of the vote to Smith’s 26%. She also carried Wilson County by 581 votes, winning 54.5% of the vote. She also won in Perquimans County by 378 votes, in Edgecombe County by nearly 300 votes, and Currituck by more than 200 votes.

Smith won Pasquotank County by 166 votes, garnering 52.5% of the vote to Buckhout’s 47.5%.

Buckhout also won Wayne County. With all votes in, Buckhout had 5,203, or 51.7%, to Smith’s 4,858, or 48.2%. She also won in Martin County with 59% of the vote, Greene County with 58% of the vote and Gates County with 53%.

Buckhout also won Tyrrell County with 71% of the vote and Washington County with 66%. She won Warren County with 53% of the vote and was leading Smith in Bertie with 57% of the vote.

Smith won her home county in Nash by less than 100 votes. She also won Camden with 53% of the vote. She also won Vance County with 53% of the vote, Hertford County with 57% of the vote and Northampton with 52% of the vote.