NC Sen. Mike Woodard, who voted with GOP on Cooper vetoes, loses to primary challenger
Sophia Chitlik beat incumbent Mike Woodard in the Democratic primary for North Carolina’s Senate District 22, according to unofficial results.
She won with 57.55% of the vote, a percentage that held throughout the night. All 36 precincts reported around 10:40 p.m.
Chitlik is from California and moved to Durham in 2017. She positioned herself as a progressive who would fight for caregivers, touting her identity as a working mom and experience working for former President Barack Obama.
“Durham is a place where progressives win,” Chitlik said from a party in downtown Durham as results trickled in Tuesday night. “These early returns indicate that District 22 is ready for a change, that District 22 deserves someone who will fight for our Durham values. That kind of change is possible right here, right now.”
Chitlik will face Libertarian Ray Ubinger in the November election.
Woodard was the only member of Durham’s legislative delegation to face a primary challenger. It was the first time in a decade that a fellow Democrat challenged Woodard for the seat he held since 2012.
Critics took aim at Woodard for voting to override Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto three times last year.
Woodard defended his work on those bills in a 2023 interview with The News & Observer, saying the Democratic caucus supported them before the vetoes, which he called a “curveball at the 11th hour.”
The bills focused on consumer fees and government audits and all Democrats except Woodard voted against the veto overrides. Two of the bills passed the Senate unanimously the first time around. Democrats were split on the third in the initial vote.
Woodard said he’s had to work with Republicans to accomplish anything, because they’ve held a majority or supermajority throughout his tenure.
“I’m always going to be there trying to negotiate to make things better,” he said. “You can be the naysayer, but you will not be very effective.”
Chitlik gained early momentum when she snapped up the endorsements of Durham’s major political action committees, the People’s Alliance and Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People.
But Woodard earned INDY Week’s endorsement and has long ties in local political circles. He served on the City Council for seven years beginning in 2005 and placed second in the 2023 mayoral race.
Terms in the state legislature last two years.
All six North Carolina General Assembly members from Durham are Democrats. Some will face challengers in November, but the seats are considered safe for the Democratic Party.
- Chitlik will face Ubinger.
- Durham’s other state senator, Natalie Murdock (District 20), has a Republican challenger in Christopher Partain.
- State House representative Ray Jeffers (District 2) will face Republican Jason Chambers.
- Three House members are unchallenged: Vernetta Alston (District 29), Marcia Morey (District 30), and Zack Hawkins (District 31).
Aaron Sánchez-Guerra contributed to this report.
This story was originally published March 5, 2024 at 8:28 PM.
