Trump’s Budd takes Republican Senate nomination in NC, while Democrat Beasley wins easily

Donald Trump-endorsed U.S Rep. Ted Budd of Davie County won the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate in North Carolina while former N.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Cheri Beasley won the Democratic nomination, The Associated Press declared less than an hour after the polls closed on Tuesday evening.

The two will face each other and Libertarian Shannon Bray in the general election in November.

The candidates needed to get more than 30% of the votes to win their primaries and avoid a run-off primary that would have been held on July 26.

As of 12:15 a.m., with all but one of the state’s precincts reported:

Budd led the Republican field of 14 candidates with 444,862 tallied votes, or 58.6% of the ballots. Former Gov. Pat McCrory had 186,599 or 24.6%.

Meanwhile, in the Democratic primary, Beasley led a field of 11 candidates with 487,178 or 81.09% of the tallied votes.

NC GOP: ‘This Budd’s for us!’

“Primaries are tough, and I want to thank my primary opponents for running spirited campaigns,” Budd said in a statement Tuesday night. “I know they all believe strongly in our great country, and they’ve all contributed mightily to public service. I look forward to working closely with them as we move forward, and I feel confident they all have a lot of good things left to offer our great state.”

Budd trailed in early polling for the Republican primary a year ago but got an unexpected boost when former President Trump endorsed him at the North Carolina Republican Party’s convention in June.

Read all about it: Donald Trump endorses Rep. Ted Budd for US Senate at GOP convention.

Senate candidate Walker: Trump endorsement of opponent in GOP primary was ‘orchestrated’

A week later, candidate Walker alleged that Trump’s former chief of staff, former N.C. Congressman Mark Meadows, had “orchestrated” the endorsement. Meanwhile McCrory, who served one term as governor and was picked on by Trump for twice losing statewide elections, struggled as Budd rose in the polls over the last year.

Budd noted Trump’s endorsement in his victory statement.

“I never wavered from his America First Agenda because I know it’s the best thing for the working families of North Carolina,” he said. “Earning President Trump’s support helped me earn the support of those same working families across North Carolina, and I greatly appreciate it.”

Democrats takin’ it easy with Beasley

Democrat Beasley was a District Court judge in Fayetteville and later ascended through the appellate courts to chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court. But then she lost the 2020 election to Republican Paul Newby by just 401 votes out of 5.39 million cast.

“North Carolina, I am honored to be your nominee,” Beasley said in her prepared remarks after the Associated Press declared her the winner of her primary. “And I’m honored to stand with all of you, and on the shoulders of the many trailblazers who came before, to be the first African American woman to be your Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate.”

Beasley’s campaign issued a memo Tuesday evening that asserts she is well-positioned to win in November due to her strong fund-raising, with $9.6 million taken in, plus her early engagement with voters. She cites a recent polls that her campaign released that says she is tied with Budd.

The Democratic primary was competitive early on, with Beasley facing state Sen. Jeff Jackson of Charlotte and former state Sen. Erica Smith of Northampton County.

But Smith dropped out in November and instead shifted her attention to the Northeast North Carolina 1st Congressional District. She lost the primary race for the 1st District to state Sen. Don Davis on Tuesday.

Jackson dropped out of the Senate race in December, clearing the path for Beasley, as her remaining 10 opponents were not strong contenders. Jackson in February put in for the 14th Congressional District and was declared the winner Tuesday night.

Senior North Carolina reporter Paul Woolverton can be reached at 910-261-4710 and pwoolverton@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: GOP’s Ted Budd, Democrats’ Cheri Beasley win NC Senate primaries