Governor elections in North Carolina
● In officeJosh SteinDemocratic
Elections won
R 6 · D 73 · Other 25104 gubernatorial elections since 1789
Last decided by
14.8 pts2024, Josh Stein over Mark Robinson
Closest ever
0.98 pts1872, Tod Robinson Caldwell over Augustus Summerfield Merrimon
Longest streak
24 in a rowDemocratic, 1808–1831
Next election
2028Tuesday, November 7, 2028
North Carolina's governor is Democrat Josh Stein; Stein won the most recent race by 14.8 points in 2024. Stein has held the office since 2024. The 2024 race put Stein ahead of Mark Robinson, 14.8 points clear. Across 104 elections since 1789, Republicans have won 6 and Democrats 73, with 25 going to other parties. Of those, the closest was 1872, decided by 0.98 points; the widest 1866, by 52.0 points.
Josh Stein D 3,069,496 · Mark Robinson R 2,241,309
Roy Cooper D 2,834,790 · Dan Forest R 2,586,605
Roy Cooper D 2,309,157 · Pat McCrory R 2,298,880
Pat McCrory R 2,440,707 · Walter H. Dalton D 1,931,580
Bev Perdue D 2,146,189 · Pat McCrory R 2,001,168
Mike Easley D 1,939,154 · Patrick Ballantine R 1,495,021
Mike Easley D 1,530,324 · Richard Vinroot R 1,360,960
Jim Hunt D 1,436,638 · Robin Hayes R 1,097,053
Jim Hunt D 1,368,246 · Jim Gardner R 1,121,955
James G. Martin R 1,222,258 · Robert B. Jordan D 997,408
James G. Martin R 1,208,167 · Rufus L. Edmisten D 1,011,209
Jim Hunt D 1,143,145 · I. Beverly Lake R 691,449
Jim Hunt D 1,081,293 · David Flaherty R 564,102
James Holshouser R 767,470 · Skipper Bowles D 729,104
Robert W. Scott D 821,233 · Jim Gardner R 737,075
Dan K. Moore D 790,343 · Robert L. Gavin R 606,165
Terry Sanford D 735,248 · Robert L. Gavin R 613,975
Luther H. Hodges D 760,480 · Kyle Hayes R 375,379
William B. Umstead D 796,306 · Herbert F. Seawell Jr. R 383,329
W. Kerr Scott D 570,995 · George M. Pritchard R 206,166
R. Gregg Cherry D 528,995 · Frank C. Patton R 230,998
J. Melville Broughton D 608,744 · Robert H. McNeill R 195,402
Clyde R. Hoey D 542,139 · Gilliam Grissom R 270,843
John C. B. Ehringhaus D 497,657 · Clifford C. Frazier R 212,561
Oliver Max Gardner D 362,009 · Herbert F. Seawell Jr. R 289,415
Angus Wilton McLean D 294,441 · Isaac Melson Meekins R 185,627
Cameron A. Morrison D 308,151 · John J. Parker R 230,175
Thomas Walter Bickett D 167,761 · Frank A. Linney R 120,157
William Walton Kitchin D 145,102 · J. Elwood Cox R 107,760
Robert Broadnax Glenn D 128,761 · Charles Joseph Harris R 79,505
Charles Brantley Aycock D 186,650 · Spencer B. Adams R 126,296
Daniel Gould Fowle D 148,405 · Oliver H Dockery R 134,035
Alfred Moore Scales D 143,249 · Tyre York R 122,795
Thomas Jordan Jarvis D 121,837 · Ralph P. Buxton R 115,559
Zebulon Baird Vance D 123,265 · Thomas Settle R 110,061
William Woods Holden R 92,235 · Thomas Samuel Ashe C 73,600
Jonathan Worth N 34,250 · Alfred Dockery N 10,759
Jonathan Worth N 32,549 · William Woods Holden N 25,809
John Willis Ellis D 59,396 · John Pool W 53,303
John Willis Ellis D 56,429 · Duncan K McRae D 40,036
Thomas Bragg D 57,698 · John Adams Gilmer K 44,970
Thomas Bragg D 48,705 · Alfred Dockery W 46,644
David Settle Reid D 48,484 · John Kerr Jr. W 42,993
David Settle Reid D 45,827 · Charles Manly W 42,972
Charles Manly W 42,536 · David Settle Reid D 41,682
William Alexander Graham W 43,486 · James B. Shepard D 35,627
William Alexander Graham W 42,586 · Michael Hoke D 39,433
John Motley Morehead W 39,596 · Louis D. Henry D 35,024
John Motley Morehead W 44,484 · Romulus M. Saunders D 35,903
Edward Bishop Dudley W 38,119 · John Branch D 21,155
Edward Bishop Dudley W 35,791 · Richard Dobbs Spaight Jr. D 31,018
Richard Dobbs Spaight Jr. F 68 · William Lenoir F 39 · John Baptista Ashe F 30 · Benjamin Williams F 28 · +1 more