This post is republished with permission from FlipNC, an all-volunteer, grassroots organization using targeted, direct voter outreach to elect progressives in North Carolina. Their focus this year is on critical judicial elections. And they are having a launch party tomorrow Sunday, Feb. 25 at 6 pm at Motorco in downtown Durham. It’s free, but registration is required!
Early voting ends March 2. The primary election is on March 5. Early voting sites and schedules are available at the Early Voting Site Search. Locations and voting hours are also available at Early Voting Sites for the March 5, 2024 Primary Election (PDF).
Republicans currently control both our State Supreme Court and our Court of Appeals. We have an opportunity to take back both courts by 2028. Thankfully, we have some outstanding Democratic candidates for all of the seats up for election this year!
All of these seats have eight-year terms, so the stakes for each race are high – and each win will have long-term effects.
Meet the Democratic candidates for statewide judicial races at FLIP NC’s 2024 launch party.
NORTH CAROLINA SUPREME COURT
Republicans currently hold five of the seven State Supreme Court seats. Only one seat is up for election in 2024, and there is a Democratic primary.
Justice Allison Riggs
Justice Allison Riggs
Justice Riggs was appointed Associate Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court by Gov. Roy Cooper in September 2023. She is filling the remaining term of Justice Michael Morgan and is running for a full term in 2024. As a civil rights lawyer, Justice Riggs has spent her career fighting for equal justice under the law for every person, regardless of wealth or skin color.
Prior to her appointment to the North Carolina Court of Appeals in 2022 and then to the North Carolina Supreme Court, Justice Riggs served as co-executive director for programs and chief counsel for voting rights at the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, advocating for those who had been marginalized and disenfranchised. As a civil rights lawyer, Justice Riggs argued before the U.S. Supreme Court in several landmark redistricting cases. Learn more.
Judge Lora Cubbage
Judge Lora Cubbage
Judge Lora Cubbage is also running for the seat currently held by Justice Riggs. Prior to her law career, Judge Cubbage spent 17 years behind a barber chair, getting to know about the cares and concerns of the citizens of Greensboro. It was there that she realized she had a higher calling to serve in a space that would allow her to affect societal change and impact top policymakers and leaders.
Judge Cubbage began her law career as an assistant district attorney, prosecuting cases for the State of North Carolina. She next served as an assistant attorney general. Judge Cubbage was appointed to the Superior Court by Gov. Roy Cooper in March 2018 and was subsequently elected to the seat in November 2018. While on the bench, Judge Cubbage has had the opportunity to preside over criminal cases from murder to felony larceny and civil cases from breach of contract to complex estate cases. Learn more.
Note: FLIP NC does not endorse in primaries. We encourage all voters to participate in the primary and cast their ballot for their preferred candidate. We look forward to hitting the ground running to support the party’s nominee when we hold our first canvass on March 10.
NORTH CAROLINA COURT OF APPEALS
Democrats hold only 4 of the 15 Court of Appeals Seats, and only 3 seats are up for election this year. We have the opportunity to take back the Court of Appeals by 2028. Winning these seats is critical!
Judge Carolyn Thompson
Judge Carolyn Thompson
Judge Carolyn Thompson was appointed to the North Carolina Court of Appeals by Gov. Roy Cooper in September 2023. She is filling the remaining term of Justice Allison Riggs upon her appointment to the N.C. Supreme Court and is now running for a full term. Judge Thompson is running to make a difference in the service of equal justice, as required by our laws and Constitution.
Judge Thompson is a former District Court judge, Superior Court judge, and deputy commissioner for the Industrial Commission with over 25 years of combined legal and judicial experience. As a District Court judge, she successfully advocated for changes to the district’s court docket to better support victims of domestic violence. Judge Thompson is a state-certified mediator for Superior Court cases and cases involving complex family financial disputes. She also serves as a volunteer Teen Court Judge and youth mentor to help first-time youth offenders accept responsibility for their conduct and learn about the court system. Learn more.
Martin Moore
Martin Moore
Martin Moore is a Buncombe County Commissioner and an attorney. He began his law career as a public defender and now runs a mediation and appellate law practice. He is running for North Carolina Court of Appeals because he believes that our courts should reflect the people and values of North Carolina and that our state deserves judges who are committed to integrity, fairness, and equal justice for all.
During the 2022 election cycle, Moore was the only Democrat in North Carolina to flip a Republican-held county commissioner seat, winning 55 percent to 44 percent against NASCAR Hall of Fame member Robert Pressley. In the county, Moore serves on committees that work on early childhood development, criminal justice, and juvenile crime prevention. Learn more.
Ed Eldred
Edward “Ed” Eldred is an experienced trial and appellate lawyer whose practice focuses on criminal and civil matters. He is running for the North Carolina Court of Appeals to preserve the rights of North Carolinians and contribute to a more balanced judiciary.
Ed Eldred
Eldred has extensive law experience. He previously clerked for two judges at the North Carolina Court of Appeals, practiced with a large firm in Raleigh, and managed his own law practice for 13 years, arguing hundreds of matters in the local criminal and civil district courts and briefing over 200 appeals. He has argued before the North Carolina Court of Appeals and the North Carolina Supreme Court and won reversals for clients in a variety of civil and criminal matters. Learn more.
Join us at FLIP NC’s 2024 launch party on Feb. 25 at Motorco in downtown Durham to meet the 2024 candidates for statewide judicial races.