CHARLOTTE — A Democratic surge flipped the North Carolina House after 16 years of Republican control Tuesday’s midterm elections.
According to The Associated Press, these Democratic victories could give more power to Gov. Josh Stein, who has clashed with Republican state leaders during his first term. Many are calling these victories a rejection of recent Republican policies and President Donald Trump’s agenda in his second term.
In a WSOC/WRAL poll, 51% of North Carolinians say their life and financial standing have gotten worse since the 2024 election. Of those, 52% lay blame for that on Trump. The poll found 27% say the president, congressional leaders from both parties and local politicians all share the blame, and 9% blame Democrats in Congress.
Of all the issues that drove voters to the polls in record numbers, the economy and health care came out as the most important issues for voters, according to the poll.
What’s next for Democrats in North Carolina
Democrats took back a majority in the North Carolina State House for the first time in more than a decade and came up one seat short of controlling both chambers.
Gov. Josh Stein hopes the next two years will be filled with bipartisan action, but he took a victory lap on Wednesday after voters elected a near supermajority in the state House. In a news conference Wednesday afternoon, Stein called on Democrats and Republicans to work together on bills dealing with education, public safety, and Hurricane Helene recovery.
Stein says voters want balance and common sense from their government.
“There’s not one piece of legislation that’s going to fix what needs to be fixed in North Carolina,” Stein said. “But if we work together -- the new Speaker [Robert] Reives, the new president pro tem, all of the Democratic and Republican members of the General Assembly -- I am confident we can deliver for people of North Carolina.”
“The pep talk to Republicans is this: First of all, there’s nowhere to go. You can’t go down, so you can’t go anywhere but up,” said Dallas Woodhouse, former NCGOP executive director.
Woodhouse says the election night results give North Carolina Republicans the opportunity to come back stronger. He says Republicans must start the work to win back unaffiliated voters, and he says Democrats will have to prove they can govern moderately.
“The great wisdom of our forefathers is that there is nothing permanent in our election system other than gravity,” Woodhouse said. “What goes up must come down.”
There’s one North Carolina Senate race that is going to a recount, and it will determine whether Republicans can keep the majority there. Robeson County’s Danny Britt is ahead by 268 votes.
If it holds, Republicans would have 26 seats in the state senate. Democrats 24. If Britt’s Democratic opponent wins, it would be 25-25 with any tie votes being broken by Democratic Lt. Governor Rachel Hunt.
How each North Carolina county voted
Use the interactive map below for a county-by-county breakdown of the winners:
NC General Assembly
Click a county to see the winners for every State House and State Senate district appearing in that county's precinct results.
Source: NCSBE Nov. 3, 2026 precinct results.
Balance of power
Party control based on the winning candidate in each 2026 legislative district.
©2026 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/LH3JSJEF3VBLRJLJQESEAG34AM.png)
