2020 United States House of Representatives elections in North Carolina

The 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in North Carolina were held on November 3, 2020, to elect the 13 U.S. representatives from the state of North Carolina, one from each of the state's 13 congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections.

North Carolina was one of two states in which the party that won the state's popular vote did not win a majority of seats in 2020, the other state being Arizona.

2020 North Carolina redistricting
Following a 2019 court order, the North Carolina General Assembly passed a bill with new Congressional districts for the 2020 elections. Among other changes, the 2nd and 6th districts were drawn to be more urban. Those changes led the two incumbents in these districts, George Holding and Mark Walker, respectively, to retire. Both were Republicans, and Democrats won the newly redrawn districts. One other seat was open, as former Rep. Mark Meadows had resigned to become White House Chief of Staff, but a fellow Republican held that seat for the party. Incumbents won all elections in which they ran, with the 8th district (Richard Hudson) seat having the closest margin of victory.

District
Results of the 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in North Carolina by district:

District 1
The 1st district encompasses the Inner Banks, taking in Greenville, Henderson, and Roanoke Rapids. Following redistricting, the district remained relatively the same but lost its share of Durham and Granville counties. In its place it gained Nash, Wayne, and Greene counties. It also increased its share of Wilson and Pitt counties. The incumbent was Democrat G. K. Butterfield, who was re-elected with 69.9% of the vote in 2018.

Nominee

 * G. K. Butterfield, incumbent U.S. representative

Nominee

 * Sandy Smith, business executive and farmer

Eliminated in primary

 * Ethan Baca, businessman
 * Jim Glisson
 * Michele Nix, former vice chairwoman of the North Carolina Republican Party and candidate for North Carolina's 3rd congressional district in 2019

District 2
The 2nd district takes in much of Wake County portion of the Research Triangle region. Following redistricting, the 2nd district is now located entirely in Wake County, taking in Raleigh, Cary, Garner, Apex, Holly Springs, Fuquay-Varina, and Morrisville. Wake Forest and Rocky Mount as well as the rural parts of the district were removed from the district. The incumbent was Republican George Holding, who was re-elected with 51.3% of the vote in 2018. On December 6, 2019, Holding announced he would not seek re-election, after his congressional district was drawn to be more favorable to the Democratic Party.

Nominee

 * Alan Swain, attorney

Declined

 * George Holding, incumbent U.S. representative

Nominee

 * Deborah K. Ross, former state representative and nominee for U.S. Senate in 2016

Eliminated in primary

 * Monika Johnson-Hostler, Wake County school board-member
 * Ollie Nelson, retired U.S. Marine, educator, and pastor
 * Andy Terrell, former Obama administration official

Withdrawn

 * Scott Cooper, nonprofit director and former U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant colonel

Declined

 * Sam Searcy, state senator

Nominee

 * Jeff Matemu, attorney and candidate for North Carolina's 2nd congressional district in 2018

District 3
The 3rd district is located on the Eastern North Carolina shore and covers the Outer Banks and counties along the Pamlico Sound. Republican Walter B. Jones Jr., who was re-elected unopposed in 2018, died on February 10, 2019, and a special election was held to fill the vacancy. The incumbent was Republican Greg Murphy, who won the special election with 61.7% of the vote. The district remained relatively unchanged following redistricting.

Nominee

 * Greg Murphy, incumbent U.S. representative

Nominee

 * Daryl Farrow

District 4
The 4th district takes in the part of the Research Triangle area not located in Wake County including Chapel Hill and Durham. Redistricting resulted in it losing its share of Raleigh, instead picking up northern Wake County, taking in Wake Forest, Zebulon, Rolesville, and Knightdale, as well as Chatham County, Durham County, Franklin County and Granville County. The incumbent was Democrat David Price, who was re-elected with 72.4% of the vote in 2018.

Nominee

 * David Price, incumbent U.S. representative

Eliminated in primary

 * Daniel Ulysses Lockwood, web & graphic designer and developer

Nominee

 * Robert Thomas, attorney

Eliminated in primary

 * Debesh Sarkar, structural engineer
 * Nasir Shaikh
 * Steve Von Loor, nominee for North Carolina's 4th congressional district in 2018

District 5
The 5th district is based in mostly rural mountainous areas of northwestern North Carolina. Redistricting moved the district to the west and south, resulting in it losing the city of Winston-Salem and picking up many rural counties in western North Carolina. It lost its share of Surry, Stokes, Yadkin, and Forsyth counties to the 10th district. It also lost Avery County to the 11th district. In its place it picked up Gaston County, Cleveland County, part of Rutherford County, as well as Burke and Caldwell counties. A small portion in northwest Catawba County is also in the district. The incumbent was Republican Virginia Foxx, who was re-elected with 57.0% of the vote in 2018.

Nominee

 * Virginia Foxx, incumbent U.S. representative

Declined

 * Tracy Philbeck, Gaston County commissioner

Nominee

 * David Brown, IT consultant and nominee for North Carolina's 10th congressional district in 2018

Eliminated in primary

 * Eric Hughes

Declared

 * Jeff Gregory (Constitution)

District 6
Following redistricting, the 6th district now encompasses all of Guilford County, including Greensboro as well as taking in Winston-Salem from neighboring Forsyth County. Most of the district's rural portions were moved to the 10th and the 13th districts. The incumbent was Republican Mark Walker, who was re-elected with 56.5% of the vote in 2018. On December 16, 2019, Walker announced he would not seek re-election, citing his redrawn district becoming significantly more Democratic as his primary reason.

Nominee

 * Lee Haywood, chairman of the 6th district North Carolina Republican Party

Eliminated in primary

 * Laura Pichardo, accounts-payable analyst

Declined

 * Mark Walker, incumbent U.S. representative

Nominee

 * Kathy Manning, lawyer and nominee for North Carolina's 13th congressional district in 2018

Eliminated in primary

 * Bruce Davis, former Guilford County commissioner
 * Rhonda Foxx, former chief of staff to U.S. Representative Alma Adams
 * Ed Hanes, former state representative
 * Derwin Montgomery, state representative

Withdrawn

 * Angela Flynn, lay minister (endorsed Kathy Manning)

Declared

 * Jennyfer Bucardo (independent)

District 7
The 7th district is located in southeastern North Carolina, taking in Wilmington, as well as stretching into the southern exurbs of Raleigh. After the district was redrawn, it lost its share of Wayne and Duplin counties, while gaining all of Johnston and Bladen counties and a small part of eastern Harnett County. The incumbent was Republican David Rouzer, who was re-elected with 55.5% of the vote in 2018.

Nominee

 * David Rouzer, incumbent U.S. representative

Disqualified

 * Pete D'Abrosca, blogger

Nominee

 * Chris Ward, pharmaceutical sales executive

Eliminated in primary

 * Robert Colon, wastewater manager
 * Mark Judson, retired U.S. Army officer and businessman

District 8
The 8th district spans from the Charlotte exurbs of Concord and Kannapolis into Fayetteville, including China Grove, Albemarle, Troy, Pinehurst, Raeford, and Spring Lake. Redistricting resulted in the 8th district losing its share of Rowan County, Hoke County and southern Moore County, while gaining all of Cumberland County, western Harnett County and most of Lee County. The incumbent was Republican Richard Hudson, who was re-elected with 55.3% of the vote in 2018.

Nominee

 * Richard Hudson, incumbent U.S. representative

Nominee

 * Patricia Timmons-Goodson, vice chair of the United States Commission on Civil Rights and former Associate Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court

District 9
The 9th district spans from south Charlotte and its southern suburbs of Matthews and Mint Hill into suburban Fayetteville, including Union, Anson, Richmond, Scotland, and Robeson counties. The district remained vacant after the 2018 elections, following the refusal of the state board of elections to certify the results and an ongoing investigation into absentee ballot fraud, and on February 21, 2019, all five members of the board voted to call a new election. Redistricting resulted in the district losing its share of Cumberland and Bladen counties, while gaining southern Moore County and Hoke County. The incumbent was Republican Dan Bishop, who won the special election with 50.7% of the vote.

Nominee

 * Dan Bishop, incumbent U.S. representative

Nominee

 * Cynthia Wallace, financial services vice president and chair of the 9th district for the North Carolina Democratic Party

Eliminated in primary

 * Clayton Brooks, Baptist minister and first chair of the Wake County Democratic Party
 * Harry Southerland, Hoke County commissioner
 * Marcus Williams, lawyer

Declined

 * Dan McCready, former U.S. Marine, businessman, and nominee for this seat in 2018 & 2019

District 10
The 10th district encompasses western North Carolina stretching from the Charlotte suburbs to the South Carolina border. It lost its share of Asheville following redistricting and some of its share of the southwestern Piedmont in south central North Carolina. It gained Rockingham County, Stokes County, Surry County, Yadkin County, Iredell County, as well as part of Forsyth County from the old 5th district. The incumbent was Republican Patrick McHenry, who was re-elected with 59.3% of the vote in 2018.

Nominee

 * Patrick McHenry, incumbent U.S. representative

Eliminated in primary

 * David L. Johnson
 * Ralf Walters

Declined

 * Mark Walker, incumbent U.S. representative for North Carolina's 6th congressional district

Nominee

 * David Parker, attorney and former North Carolina Democratic Party chair

District 11
The 11th district encompasses most of rural western North Carolina, taking in the Appalachian part of the state. Redistricting resulted in the district gaining all Buncombe County, taking in Asheville. The most recent incumbent was Republican Mark Meadows, who was re-elected with 59.2% of the vote in 2018. On December 19, 2019, Meadows announced he would not run for re-election. In March 2020, Meadows was selected to serve as the 29th White House Chief of Staff, and resigned from his seat in Congress.

Nominee

 * Madison Cawthorn, motivational speaker and businessman

Eliminated in runoff

 * Lynda Bennett, businesswoman

Eliminated in primary

 * Chuck Archerd, candidate for North Carolina's 11th congressional district in 2018
 * Matthew Burril, pilot and chair of the Asheville Regional Airport Authority Board
 * Jim Davis, state senator
 * Dan Driscoll, U.S. Army veteran
 * Steve Fekete Jr.
 * Dillon Gentry, sales representative and candidate for North Carolina's 5th congressional district in 2018
 * Wayne King, deputy chief of staff to U.S. Representative Mark Meadows
 * Joey Osborne
 * Vance Patterson, businessman and candidate for North Carolina's 11th congressional district in 2012
 * Albert Wiley Jr., perennial candidate

Declined

 * Mark Meadows, former U.S. representative

Nominee

 * Moe Davis, former U.S. Air Force colonel, US Department of Labor Administrative Law Judge, and former Chief Prosecutor of the Guantanamo military commission

Eliminated in primary

 * Gina Collias, attorney and Republican candidate for North Carolina's 10th congressional district in 2018
 * Michael O'Shea, former musical artist and producer
 * Phillip Price, businessman and nominee for North Carolina's 11th congressional district in 2018
 * Steve Woodsmall, former U.S. Air Force major and Brevard College professor

Declined

 * Heath Shuler, former U.S. representative for North Carolina's 11th congressional district (2007–2013)

Declared

 * Tracey DeBruhl (Libertarian)
 * Tamara Zwinak (Green)

Predictions
Endorsements:

District 12
The 12th district is centered around Charlotte and the surrounding immediate suburbs, including Huntersville, Cornelius, Davidson, and Pineville. Redistricting left the 12th district relatively unchanged, but it gained some southern Charlotte suburbs, including Mint Hill and parts of Matthews. The incumbent was Democrat Alma Adams, who was re-elected with 73.1% of the vote in 2018.

Nominee

 * Alma Adams, incumbent U.S. representative

Eliminated in primary

 * Keith Cradle, youth program director

Disqualified

 * Bill Brewster, businessman

District 13
Following redistricting, the 13th district lost some of its share of the Piedmont Triad region, losing Greensboro to the 6th district & Iredell County to the 10th district. It retained Davidson County and Davie County and expanded its share of Rowan County. The district also gained most of the rural counties previously in the 6th district, including Randolph County, Alamance County, Caswell County, Person County, and a small section of Chatham County. The incumbent was Republican Ted Budd, who was re-elected with 51.5% of the vote in 2018.

Nominee

 * Ted Budd, incumbent U.S. representative

Declined

 * Mark Walker, incumbent U.S. representative for North Carolina's 6th congressional district

Nominee

 * Scott Huffman, businessman and candidate for North Carolina's 8th congressional district in 2018