Primary Could Decide Direction of State Supreme Court | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's note: The author of this post is Rick Henderson, who is managing editor for the Carolina Journal, John Hood Publisher.

On Tuesday, voters also will choose nominees in 11 congressional districts and a series of other contests

    RALEIGH     The ideological balance of the state Supreme Court could ride on the results of Tuesday's primary election, as incumbent Justice Bob Edmunds, the only Republican on the ballot, faces Democratic attorneys Mike Morgan and Daniel Robertson and unaffiliated attorney Sabra Faires, who has the endorsement of the state's chapter of the AFL-CIO.

    The top two finishers in the primary will advance to the Nov. 8 general election, so Edmunds could be eliminated from contention on Tuesday, guaranteeing the court will shift next year from its current 4-3 conservative Republican majority to a 4-3 liberal split.

    Along with runoff elections from the top two finishers in several races from the March 15 primary, voters also will choose major-party nominees in a host of congressional primary elections, necessitated by a February federal court decision that tossed the congressional districts drawn in 2011 by the General Assembly. After the court decision, the legislature convened for a special session and drew new maps, which late last week - as early voting for the primary was drawing to a close - were upheld by a three-judge federal panel. (The State Board of Elections' list of candidate is here (Excel spreadsheet).

    Voters in 11 of the state's 13 congressional districts will choose party nominees for the general election; only the 1st and 7th Congressional Districts will not hold primaries.

    The two highest-profile races have unfolded in the 2nd and 13th districts. In the GOP's 2nd District primary, three-term incumbent Rep. Renee Ellmers faces off against two-term 13th District Rep. George Holding and Cary obstetrician Greg Brannon. Ellmers and Holding are the only two incumbents in the nation facing each other in a primary this election cycle. Holding chose to challenge Ellmers after legislative map-drawers moved the 13th District roughly 100 miles west from its current location. Holding lives about five miles from the 2nd District's boundaries.

    Meanwhile, in the 13th District, where Holding chose not to seek a third term, 17 Republicans and five Democrats are seeking nominations to run in November against independent Nicholas Tolerton. Expert political analysts say the number of candidates, the likelihood of a small turnout, and the truncated primary schedule have made the race nearly impossible to predict.

    Carolina Journal will provide full primary election results Wednesday.