Incumbents sailed to reelection in largely uncontested races across Durham in Tuesday’s general election. Legislators, judges, the district attorney, the sheriff, the clerk of court, and supervisors for the local soil and water conservation district officially won another term after running with long-shot or no opposition.
Despite few competitive local races, Durham County voters came out in droves. A total of 150,784 voters cast ballots out of 252,169 eligible to vote. Overall turnout in the election surpassed the 2022 midterm by more than 20,000 votes, and early voting ahead of Tuesday’s election set the record for early turnout in a midterm, according to the Durham County Board of Elections.
With local races largely a foregone conclusion, many Durham voters were motivated to vote in statewide races. Durham voters overwhelmingly supported Roy Cooper for U.S. Senate, Supreme Court Justice Anita Earls, and Democratic candidates for the state’s Court of Appeals, all of whom were successful in their bids. About three-quarters of Durham voters opposed measures that will enshrine voter ID requirements, cap income tax, and give legislators the authority to limit local property tax revenue; the amendments all passed.
Here’s a breakdown of who won in Durham County. Click below to jump to a race.
state legislature
House District 2
Democratic Rep. Ray Jeffers ran unopposed and will serve a third term representing Person County and northern Durham in the state House. He is a farmer and nonprofit administrator. Jeffers is a member of the House Wildlife Resources, Appropriations, and Agriculture and Environment committees. During his time in office he has sponsored legislation to prevent gun violence, provide tax relief, support farmers, and create workforce housing.
House District 29
Rep. Vernetta Alston will serve a fourth term representing southwestern Durham County in the House after running unopposed. Alston previously served on the Durham City Council for two years and is currently an attorney. Alston is the House Democratic Conference Chair; she has introduced bills to expand housing supply and allow collective bargaining for public employees. She also led the Fostering Care in NC Act into law.
House District 30
Rep. Marcia Morey defeated Libertarian candidate Ray Ubinger with 93% of votes. Morey has represented western Durham in the House since 2017. She previously served as a judge in Durham and is a founding member of the Progressive House Caucus who has focused on gun safety, workers’ rights, criminal justice reform, and voting rights.
Ubinger is a perennial candidate for the state legislature who says he runs just so that he can vote for himself.
House District 31
Rep. Zack Hawkins sailed to a fifth term in the state House without opposition. The Democrat represents the southeastern portion of Durham. He has sponsored bills to protect unions, establish independent redistricting, and fund public education. Hawkins previously worked in nonprofit development and as a Durham Public Schools teacher.
Senate District 20
Sen. Natalie Murdock was unopposed in her bid for a fourth term representing Chatham and Durham counties in the state Senate. Murdock has held a range of roles in government and politics, including in the local Democratic Party, communications, and transportation. She has focused on reproductive care and healthcare, economic mobility, and renewable energy.
Senate District 22
Sen. Sophia Chitlik handily won a second term over Republican candidate LaKeshia Alston with 85% of the vote. The district covers most of Durham County. Chitlik previously worked in education nonprofits and founded a wellness company and a consulting firm. She has supported childcare, public education, and disaster relief as a legislator. Chitlik recently drew scrutiny when The News & Observer reported that she lobbied for her husband’s energy company while it was under investigation for fraud.
Alston ran on supporting teachers’ unions and implementing tax relief, drawing criticism from Republicans who noted that she voted for the party for the first time in 2025.
In the Democratic primary in March, Chitlik won out over former Durham City Council member DeDreana Freeman with about 65% of the vote.
soil and water
With no opposition, David Harris and Mark Waller both retained their two seats on the Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors.
Waller has served on the board since 2022. Harris joined the board in 2018. Both have ties to farming.
clerk
Clerk of Superior Court Aminah Thompson officially clinched a second term with no challengers in the general election. She was first elected in 2022.
The clerk is responsible for administrative, clerical, and record-keeping functions for the district and superior courts system. Before she was elected clerk, Thompson served as a magistrate judge for over a decade. Thompson helped lead Durham’s court system through the eCourts transition.
district attorney
Durham District Attorney Satana Deberry officially locked in a third term. Deberry didn’t face opposition in the general election; she won the March primary against Jonathan Wilson with 61% of the vote.
Deberry was first elected in 2018 during a national criminal justice reform movement. In office, Deberry has worked to focus prosecutorial resources on violent crimes while creating new diversion programs. She will become Durham’s longest-serving DA at the end of her third term.
sheriff
Durham County Sheriff Clarence Birkhead, elected during the same reform wave as DA Deberry, also secured a third term without opposition following an easy primary win over Johnny Hawkins.
Birkhead has focused on expanding services in the county jail, which his office oversees, while reducing agency response times and vacancies.
judges
Durham is getting two new judges after primary winners and unopposed incumbents sailed through election night.
Myra Griffin will join the Superior Court bench. She won the March primary against Ameshia Cooper Chester and didn’t have opposition in the general election. Griffin has served on the North Carolina Industrial Commission since 2005, presiding over workers’ compensation and tort claims appeals. She will replace longtime judge Michael O’Foghludha, who didn’t seek reelection after 20 years on the bench.
Superior Court Judge Josephine Kerr Davis, who was unopposed, will get a second term. The other two Superior Court seats in Durham were not up for reelection. Superior Court judges serve eight-year terms.
And in District Court, Christy A. Hamilton Malott will officially take over after her primary defeat of incumbent Clayton Jones, who stepped down this summer before his term ended.
Judges Dave Hall, Kevin Jones, Dorothy Hairston Mitchell, and Amanda Maris were unopposed in their election bids, and Doretta Walker, who defeated a challenger in the primary, was unopposed in the general election. District Court judges serve four-year terms.
u.s. house
4th Congressional District
U.S. Rep. Valerie Foushee won a third term representing the Triangle in Congress after an unsurprising win over Libertarian Guy Meilleur and Republican Mahesh Ganorkar. Foushee won 79.4% of votes cast.
Foushee previously served as school board chair in Orange County, as an Orange County commissioner, in the state House, and in the state Senate. In March, she narrowly clinched the Democratic Party’s nomination for the 4th Congressional District seat over Durham County commissioner Nida Allam in a race that drew battle lines over data centers, campaign finance, and immigration enforcement.
Foushee ran on her experience, pledging to protect voting rights, put a check on ICE’s power, and expand access to healthcare. She is one of three co-chairs tasked with developing AI policy recommendations in the House.
The 4th Congressional District includes all of Durham and Orange counties, northern Chatham County, and western Wake County.
Results are unofficial until certified.
