WILMINGTON — When filing closed on Dec. 19 for the 2026 midterms, one unaffiliated candidate threw her name in the hat. But in order to make it onto the ballot in the general election, Rebecca Trammel will need to secure around 7,000 signatures from registered voters.
“Like a majority of voters in New Hanover County, I am — and always have been — unaffiliated,” Trammel said in a release announcing her candidacy. “Most people do not live in absolutes or partisan silos. We live with nuance. I believe it’s time our public discourse and our representation reflected that reality.”
READ MORE: A look at who filed in the 2026 tri-county elections
Trammel said her decision to run for the Senate seat centers on a growing number of unaffiliated voters in New Hanover County who don’t feel adequately represented in the state legislature.
Currently, Republican Michael Lee, also the Senate Majority Leader, holds the District 7 seat for New Hanover County. He will face off against Democratic candidate Jessica Bichler on Nov. 5, 2026.
Because Trammel is registered unaffiliated, state law mandates she secures signatures from 4% of the voting population registered in District 7 as of Jan. 1, 2026. The petition will need to be turned in to the county board of elections by noon on March 3 — the state primary election day.
There are 183,609 registered New Hanover voters, with the majority being unaffiliated at 78,744. In addition, there are are 54,774 Republicans in New Hanover County, followed by 48,620 Democrats, 1,338 Libertarians and 133 from the Green Party.
“Independent of a party is one thing,” Trammel said in her candidate announcement. “Being independent from my community is not an option. This campaign will be built with the people of New Hanover County, focused on the issues that affect our daily lives and our shared future.”
An area advocate, Trammel has been outspoken about the state releasing Leandro funding for schools and also is a community organizer who has helped feed school children in need. She leads the Community Conversations program, intended to create equity and excellence in education, bringing awareness to varied issues of implicit bias and cultural competency in the public school system. In 2020, Trammel appeared on a podcast with Port City Daily addressing challenges of remote education in the Covid-19 era.
According to Trammel, her campaign focuses on improving public education funding, putting a stop to partisan gerrymandering and addressing rising costs of living statewide.
“We have a constitutional obligation to provide every child access to a sound, basic education, and too many families are struggling under the pressure of rising costs,” she said in a release. “These are solvable problems if we approach them with integrity and seriousness.”
Trammel formally announced her candidacy on Dec. 22, her deceased mother’s 71st birthday. Ruthie Trammel was a social worker for 23 years, helping individuals and families recover from addiction. Her daughter started a nonprofit, Ruthie Trammel’s Champions for Compassion, to continue the work. The nonprofit also launched Dream Big a few years ago, gifting beds to children in need.
Trammel plans to host canvassing events to secure the signatures needed.
[Ed. Note: A previous version of this article stated Trammel had to get signatures from 4% of the voting population in New Hanover County to get on the ballot; it is actually 4% of District 7. PCD regrets the error.]
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