The 2016 North Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 2016, concurrently with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as elections to the United States Senate and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
Primary elections were held March 15.[1] Both major party candidates won their primaries by overwhelming margins. The Republican nominee, incumbent governor of North Carolina Pat McCrory was running for a second term in office.[2] Roy Cooper, the incumbent Attorney General of the state and the second-longest-serving Attorney General in North Carolina history, was the Democratic nominee. Lon Cecil, a consultant and electrical engineer, was the Libertarian nominee. This race was expected to be among the most competitive in the country in the 2016 gubernatorial election cycle.[3]
On election night, the race was too close to call, with Cooper leading by fewer than 5,000 votes out of more than 4.6 million cast.[4] That lead eventually widened to 10,281 votes. Cooper claimed victory that night, with thousands of provisional ballots still yet to be counted, saying, "We have won this race." However, McCrory refused to concede, claiming that the race was still too close to call and the winner had not yet been determined. He cast doubt on the authenticity of 90,000 late-arriving votes from Durham County, which put Cooper in the lead.[5] McCrory's campaign filed complaints alleging voter fraud in over 50 counties.[6] Both campaigns anticipated a protracted legal battle over the results.[7]
On November 22, 2016, McCrory formally requested a statewide recount;[8] once all ballots are counted, North Carolina election law allows either candidate to request a recount if the margin is fewer than 10,000 votes.[7] On November 30, 2016, the North Carolina State Board of Elections ordered a recount of certain votes in Durham County.[9] The recount was slated to be completed on December 5, 2016. However, when early results made it apparent that the margin would not change, McCrory conceded the race to Cooper on the afternoon of December 5.
This was the first time since North Carolina governors became eligible for immediate reelection in 1976 that a sitting officeholder was defeated in that person's bid for a second term.[10] This was the first North Carolina gubernatorial election since 1896 in which neither candidate received over 50% of the vote. It was also the only gubernatorial seat to flip from Republican to Democratic in 2016. With a margin of 0.22%, this election was additionally the closest race of the 2016 gubernatorial election cycle.
^"WRAL: North Carolina primaries officially on March 15 with signing". Archived from the original on October 2, 2015. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
^"Gov. Pat McCrory launches 2016 campaign". The News & Observer. December 2, 2014. Archived from the original on December 26, 2014. Retrieved December 5, 2014.
^"Top 10 governors races of 2016". Politico. December 29, 2015. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
^"In North Carolina, a Governor's Race Is Too Close to Call". The New York Times. November 9, 2016. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
^Cite error: The named reference WTVD was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference CNO11162016 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ ab"The North Carolina governor's race still isn't over. And it's about to get even uglier". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
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