Now that polls have closed, preliminary election numbers show few changes in Brunswick County, aside from a new commissioner and school board member taking seats on the county boards. (Port City Daily/File)
BRUNSWICK COUNTY — Now that polls have closed, preliminary election numbers indicate few changes are coming to Brunswick County, aside from a new commissioner and school board member taking seats on local boards.
When it comes to state, Sen. Bill Rabon and House Representatives Frank Iler and Carson Smith have held onto their seats in the North Carolina General Assembly — all three maintaining healthy spreads against their Democratic opponents.
Locally, Commissioner Randy Thompson has maintained his district 1 seat on the board of commissioners, with Republican Patti Hewett taking over from district 2’s Marty Cooke, who lost the primary earlier this year. Thompson’s Democratic opponent, Gary Woods, received 37,290 votes compared to Thompson’s 48,062. Hewett held tight with 48,798 votes compared to Democrat Sara Singer’s 36,933.
On the school board, Republican Steve Gainey has kept his district 5 seat against Democrat Brian Rupp, by 11,826 votes. Republican Paige Morgan has secured district 3 against Democrat Susanne Duncan by almost 12,000 votes.
Around 57% of the 151,748 registered voters turned out for the 2026 midterms in Brunswick County. They also voted to pass all constitutional amendments and the $349.6 million school bond referendum on the ballot this year.
Below are the preliminary results from the N.C. State Board of Elections, which will be canvassed on Friday, Nov. 12.
U.S. Senate
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Michael Whatley
REP
44,936
51.84%
Roy Cooper
DEM
39,795
45.91%
Shannon W. Bray
LIB
1,267
1.46%
Michael Dublin
GRE
690
0.80%
U.S. House of Representatives District 7
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
David Rouzer
REP
49,312
56.84%
Kimberly Hardy
DEM
36,840
42.47%
Maad Abu-Ghazalah
LIB
600
0.69%
N.C. Supreme Court Associate JusticeSeat 1
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Sarah Stevens
REP
46,995
54.60%
Anita Earls
DEM
39,079
45.40%
N.C. Court of Appeals JudgeSeat 1
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Michael C. Byrne
REP
49,060
57.09%
John S. Arrowood
DEM
36,871
42.91%
N.C. Court of Appeals JudgeSeat 2
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
George Cooper Bell
REP
48,869
56.93%
Tobias (Toby) Hampson
DEM
36,974
43.07%
N.C. Court of Appeals JudgeSeat 3
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Craig Collins
REP
48,289
56.48%
Christine Marie Walczyk
DEM
37,207
43.52%
N.C. Senate District 8
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Bill Rabon
REP
47,835
55.36%
Richard (Rick) Combes
DEM
36,581
42.33%
Tim White
LIB
1,994
2.31%
N.C. House of Representatives District 17
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Frank Iler
REP
29,965
54.50%
Dennis A. Breen
DEM
25,019
45.50%
N.C. House of Representatives District 19
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Charlie Miller
REP
18,384
58.99%
Scott Nasiff
DEM
12,783
41.01%
N.C. District Court Judge District 15 Seat 2
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Bryan D. Wilson
REP
55,058
100.00%
N.C. District Court Judge District 15 Seat 5
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Will M. Callihan, Jr.
REP
54,864
100.00%
N.C. District Court Judge District 15 Seat 7
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Sarah McPherson
REP
55,584
100.00%
District Attorney District 15
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
J.K. Somers
REP
54,987
100.00%
Brunswick County Commissioner District 1
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Randy Thompson
REP
48,602
56.59%
Gary Woods
DEM
37,290
43.41%
Brunswick County Commissioner District 2
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Patti Hewett
REP
48,798
56.92%
Sara Singer
DEM
36,933
43.08%
Brunswick County Board of Education District 3
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Paige Morgan
REP
48,863
56.98%
Susanne Duncan
DEM
36,895
43.02%
Brunswick County Board of Education District 5
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Steve Gainey
REP
48,675
56.91%
Brian D. Rupp
DEM
36,849
43.09%
Brunswick County Clerk of Superior Court
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Katie Madon
REP
56,149
100.00%
Brunswick County Sheriff
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Brian M. Chism
REP
57,861
100.00%
Brunswick County Soil and Water Conservation DistrictSupervisor
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Mike Barbee
38,384
38.37%
Jody E. Clemmons
38,216
38.20%
Anthony Street
21,552
21.54%
Write-In (Miscellaneous)
1,883
1.88%
Constitutional Amendment: Require ID for Voting
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
For
62,674
73.91%
Against
22,127
26.09%
Constitutional Amendment: Max income tax rate of 3.5%
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
For
64,555
76.16%
Against
20,208
23.84%
Constitutional Amendment: Property tax levy limit
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
For
62,915
74.23%
Against
21,841
25.77%
Brunswick County School Bond Referendum
NAME ON BALLOT
PARTY
BALLOT COUNT
PERCENT
Yes
45,076
54.95%
No
36,960
45.05%
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Shea Carver is the editor in chief at Port City Daily. A UNCW alumna, Shea worked in the print media business in Wilmington for 22 years before joining the PCD team in October 2020. She specializes in arts coverage — music, film, literature, theatre — the dining scene, and can often be tapped on where to go, what to do and who to see in Wilmington.
When she isn’t hanging with her pup, Shadow Wolf, tending the garden or spinning vinyl, she’s attending concerts and live theater.
