By Kirk Ross, Staff Writer
Every election makes a little bit of history. Some are historic.
Tuesday’s election fell into the latter category, with Republicans taking control of both houses of the North Carolina legislature for the first time since 1898.
The unofficial house tally shows 67 seats for the GOP and 53 seats for Democrats in the house – a swing of 15 seats – and a 28 to 22 majority in the Senate, a pickup of eight seats.
That shift brought about the end of Rep. Joe Hackney’s tenure as House Speaker. Hackney won his race against Republican Cathy Wright with 17,948 votes to her 13,305, but will be seated as a member of the minority party when the house clerk gavels in the next session on Jan. 26.
Hackney said he called Rep. Paul Stam, who will likely run for speaker, to offer congratulations Tuesday night. The main task ahead, he said, is to prevent heavy cuts to education as the Republicans try to make good on their promises.
“What we’ll try to do is protect the education gains we’ve made over the years as we’ve built up our universities and community colleges,†he said. He also expects to see the new majority try to advance its agenda on social issues.
Hackney, who has experienced life in the minority party in the house before, said he has not decided whether he will seek a post in the Democratic leadership.
“That’s a decision best left for a few days’ contemplation,†he said.
The rest of Orange County’s legislative delegation – all Democrats – also survived robust GOP turnout, with Sen. Ellie Kinnaird beating Republican Ryan Hilliard 36,351 to 19,737 votes and Rep. Bill Faison beating the GOP’s Rick Smith 13,754 to 10,775 votes. Rep. Verla Insko ran unopposed and received 17,539 votes.
In federal races, Fourth District U.S. Rep. David Price held onto his seat despite a strong showing by Republican B.J. Lawson in Wake County. Durham and Orange county voters helped Price beat Lawson in a rematch from 2008. Price received 152,501 votes to Lawson’s 115,715 votes.
Orange County also came out for Elaine Marshall’s bid to unseat incumbent Republican Sen. Richard Burr. Marshall, who made a last dash through Carrboro and Chapel Hill, including a stop at Weaver Street Market and Carrboro Elementary, won Orange County with nearly 68 percent of the vote, but lost statewide, pulling in 43 percent of ballots cast to Burr’s 55 percent. Libertarian Michael Beitler received 2 percent of the vote.