A group of NC teachers ran for state House. Here’s how they did in GOP primary.
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Educators who switched to GOP lost to opponents in March primary returns.
- Incumbents raised significantly more money than the teacher-candidates.
- State and local GOP groups called them 'counterfeit' and denied party resources.
A group of educators who switched political parties to run for the state House were handily defeated in Tuesday’s Republican primary elections.
NC Educators on the Ballot recruited six teachers — all of whom were previously registered as Democrats or as unaffiliated voters — to run in the March Republican primary election for the General Assembly. Initial election results showed all six candidates were badly trailing their opponents as of 11 p.m.
The educators were taking on incumbent and former Republican lawmakers in GOP-leaning districts who raised significantly more campaign money.
Rare for teachers to be lawmakers
The Educators on the Ballot candidates are:
- Pamela Ayscue running in House District 32 (Granville and Vance counties) against former Rep. Frank Sossamon.
- Michele Joyner-Dinwiddie running in House District 35 (Wake County) against Rep. Mike Schietzelt.
- Lisa Deaton Koperski running in House District 89 (Catawba and Iredell counties) against Rep. Mitchell Setzer.
- Kelly VanHorn running in House District 105 (Mecklenburg County) against Rep. Tricia Cotham.
- Chris Wilson running in House District 117 (Henderson County) against Rep. Jennifer Balkcom.
- Pam Zanni running in House District 81 (Davidson County) against Rep. Larry Potts.
Wilson was doing the best of the group with 24% of the votes, with all precincts reporting. The other candidates received less than 20% of the vote in their contests.
The low $13,951 salary for state lawmakers kept some teachers from running, according to the group.
It’s rare for an active teacher to be a lawmaker. But some school districts have made schedule accommodations to allow teachers to serve in the General Assembly.
GOP calls group ‘counterfeit candidates’
The members of NC Educators on the Ballot have said they switched parties because the way the maps are drawn by lawmakers means the victor of the GOP primary often determines who will win in November.
The state Republican Party and local GOP chapters have called the teachers “counterfeit candidates.”
The N.C. Republican Party accused NC Educators on the Ballot of trying to “interfere and mislead voters in Republican primaries.”
Several local chapters, including the Wake County Republican Party and the Mecklenburg County Republican Party, passed resolutions denying resources to the members of Educators on the Ballot.
The resolutions cite how the candidates recently changed party affiliations to become Republicans. VanHorn’s opponent, Tricia Cotham switched to the Republican Party in 2023 after having been elected as a Democrat.
This story was originally published March 3, 2026 at 10:28 PM.
