What GOP challenger in Davidson County wants NC to do on health care and budget
To help voters learn which candidates are on their ballot and where they stand on important policy issues, The News & Observer is publishing candidate questionnaires in all state and federal races in North Carolina on the March 3, 2026, ballot.
Below are the candidates running for NC House District 80 who responded to our questionnaire, in order by the date their responses were received. Some candidates did not provide a photo.
District 80 is located in Davidson County and is currently represented by Rep. Sam Watford, a Republican who is seeking reelection. Watford faces a challenger in the Republican primary, Joseph Byrne.
Watford did not respond to questionnaire.
Joseph Byrne
Age as of March 3, 2026: 30
Political party: Republican
Campaign website: Facebook “Joseph Byrne for NC House 80”
Current occupation: Owner NC Southern Capital and just finished real estate education and taking the exams soon.
Professional experience: I’m a lifelong Republican. I have served in education. I served on drug and alcohol education committees, education audit committees and an athletic booster club. I have experience in the zoning board of appeals side of government and judicial side of government. I also have a background in sales, hospitality, finance and I have just entered the real estate realm.
Education: High school diploma, real estate education
Please list any notable government or civic involvement. I’m a volunteer at the Baptist Children's Home of NC
What is the most important issue in your district and what do you want to do about it? The Second Amendment, taxes, religious liberty and affordability.
The legislature sets teacher base pay. What do you think the salary range should be for teachers, from starting to 30+ experience? I think the current system is fine and we should be rewarding effective teachers.
As of January, North Carolina was the last state not to have passed a new, comprehensive budget. What would you do to help make sure a budget passes? No legislator should be paid and they shouldn’t be allowed to leave Raleigh. Sunday would be the only exception for rest. No break until a budget is passed. If a budget doesn’t get done, leadership should lose their title and never should be allowed to be in it again.
North Carolina’s income tax rate for individual taxpayers is 3.99%. Should that be reduced further? Yes, to 0%.
Do you think the state is using taxpayer money efficiently? Why or why not? No. The previous state audit showed that with taxpayer funds sitting there. The feds will get back over $3 billion if the COVID funds aren’t used. We also have wide abuse of Medicaid which costs taxpayers billions per year.
Do you support legalizing medical marijuana use? Why or why not? No.
What do you see as the biggest barrier to health care access in your district, and what actions would you take to address it? Health care as a whole is a system that benefits the providers. We need pricing transparency and competition and allow for people to purchase plans in another state. Fraud and abuse play a big factor in government cost for Medicaid. Americans pay $308.6 billion annually just to cover the costs of insurance fraud. That’s an average of $932.63 for every American, or nearly $3,800 for a family of four.