Who the Black Political Caucus of Charlotte-Mecklenburg is endorsing in federal, state, local races
Updated: 6 hours ago
The Black Political Caucus of Charlotte-Mecklenburg — a powerful political voice in Mecklenburg County — announced its endorsements in contested races across the ballot on Tuesday, ahead of the start of early voting.
The BPC of Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s website says its three “pillars of progress” include voter education; civic engagement, including youth engagement; and political advocacy. Some of its priorities are equity in education and school board accountability, and legislative tracking to identify bills that could affect the Black community. The BPC of Charlotte-Mecklenburg is also strongly opposed to the I-77 toll lane project.
Its chosen candidates up and down the ballot are all Democrats, although two are running in a nonpartisan county race.
Judicial races
For the North Carolina Supreme Court, it endorsed incumbent Anita Earls, who is running to keep her seat from Republican challenger Sarah Stevens. Earls is the only person of color on the state Supreme Court and is a former civil rights attorney. At a candidate forum on Oct. 8, she told voters that if she loses her spot on the state Supreme Court, the court — which is otherwise white — will no longer “reflect the diversity” of North Carolina.
“It seemed to me important that we have someone on the state court that understands civil rights, and is willing to enforce the state Constitution,” Earls said of her initial decision to run for her seat in 2018.
She cast the state court as one that, since January 2023 — when it became a Republican supermajority with five Republicans and two Democrats — “is no longer protecting your rights,” citing the court’s April 2023 decision to clear the way for partisan gerrymandering.
The Black Political Caucus of Charlotte-Mecklenburg has endorsed, from left, John Arrowood, Toby Hampson and Christine Walczyk for seats on the North Carolina Court of Appeals.
The BPC of Charlotte-Mecklenburg has also endorsed three other judicial candidates. For the North Carolina Court of Appeals, it endorses incumbents John Arrowood and Toby Hampson, who occupy Seats 1 and 2, respectively. Arrowood is being challenged by Republican Michael Byrne and Hampson by Republican George Bell.
The caucus also supports Christine Walczyk, a district court judge for Wake County, for Seat 3, which is being vacated by Democratic judge Allegra Collins. Walczyk is running against Republican Craig Collins, a superior court judge in Gaston County.
Federal races
For U.S. Senate, the BPC endorsed former Gov. Roy Cooper over his Republican opponent, Michael Whatley, for the seat being vacated by Republican Thom Tillis.
The caucus also endorsed multiple Democrats for the U.S. House of Representatives. In North Carolina's 8th Congressional District, the BPC endorsed Colby Watson, who is running to unseat Republican incumbent Mark Harris. Watson’s platform includes supporting homeownership and farms, and lowering the cost of healthcare. The 8th congressional district includes Anson, Montgomery, Richmond, Scotland, Stanly and Union counties, and parts of Cabarrus, Mecklenburg and Robeson counties.
The Black Political Caucus of Charlotte-Mecklenburg has endorsed, from left, Colby Watson, Alma Adams and LaKesha Womack in U.S. House of Representatives races.
In the 12th Congressional District, the BPC endorsed Alma Adams, a longtime incumbent who has represented the district since 2014. Adams has spent much of her time in office focusing on issues that affect Black voters in her district, such as advocating for Black maternal health and HBCU funding.
Her opponent is Republican Jack Codiga, 29, who is somewhat of an outlier within his party. He promised at a recent candidate forum that he would not “toe the party line” and that he would continue to “call out the abuses of power by President Trump.”
In the 14th Congressional District, the BPC’s candidate of choice is LaKesha Womack. Womack is running to unseat Republican Congressman Tim Moore, who has been the district’s representative since 2025, after the GOP-led legislature redrew its lines to favor Republicans. The district currently encompasses all of Burke, Cleveland, Gaston and Rutherford counties, and parts of Mecklenburg and Polk counties. Before being elected to Congress, Moore served in the North Carolina statehouse for 22 years.
Womack is running on a platform that includes support for affordable healthcare and housing, workforce development initiatives and increased funding for public schools, and transparency in how taxpayer dollars are spent. She has also called for corporations to pay their fair share of taxes to reduce the burden on everyday taxpayers, and has also been vocal in her opposition to the Trump administration, repeatedly calling it the “most corrupt administration” in American history.
State races
The Black Political Caucus of Charlotte-Mecklenburg has endorsed, from left, Joyce Waddell, Caleb Theodros and Woodson Bradley for North Carolina Senate Districts 40, 41 and 42, respectively.
Incumbent Joyce Waddell is the BPC’s pick for North Carolina Senate District 40, which covers eastern and central parts of Mecklenburg County. Waddell has served in the General Assembly for six terms and was first elected in 2014. At 83, she’s the state Senate’s oldest member. Her opponent is Republican Bobbie Shields, who is 73.
And in North Carolina Senate District 41, covering central and western parts of Mecklenburg County, the caucus’ chosen candidate is the youngest member of his chamber: Caleb Theodros. Theodros also used to serve as the chair of the BPC, but stepped down to run for his position in the statehouse. He is being challenged by Republican Kevin Gray.
In what’s expected to be a competitive race, Woodson Bradley is the BPC pick for District 42. The incumbent is running to fend off Republican Stacie McGinn. This year’s race is effectively a rematch — Bradley and McGinn first faced off in 2024. It was an extremely close race last cycle, with Bradley defeating McGinn by only 209 votes.
The Black Political Caucus of Charlotte-Mecklenburg has endorsed, from left, Mary Belk, Beth Helfrich and Brandon Lofton for North Carolina House of Representatives Districts 88, 98 and 104, respectively.
In North Carolina House of Representatives District 88, the caucus endorsed Mary Belk, incumbent running for her sixth term against Republican Ray Craig. Her district encompasses parts of south-central and southeast Mecklenburg County.
The BPC has also endorsed incumbent Beth Helfrich in House District 98, who is being challenged by Republican John Rhodes, and incumbent Brandon Lofton for House District 104 over his Republican opponent Trina Boyd.
Boyd said at a candidate forum Oct. 6 that she used to be a Democrat, but switched her affiliation to the Republican Party a few years ago because of “certain [Christian] beliefs…and certain things that I agree with from that particular party.”
District 104 covers parts of south Charlotte.
In the closely watched race for District 105, the BPC has endorsed Ken McCool, who is seeking to unseat longtime incumbent Tricia Cotham. McCool served as a Matthews town commissioner from 2019 to 2025, and as Matthews mayor pro tem.
Cotham switched her party affiliation from Democrat to Republican in 2023. And McCool, too, had a switch-up in party affiliation; at a candidate forum on Oct. 13, McCool acknowledged that he used to be a registered Republican, but switched his affiliation to the Democratic Party when he got older.
McCool has vocally opposed the I-77 toll lane expansion project and wrote an editorial on his stance.
Local races
For the District 2 seat on the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners, the BPC endorsed Monifa “Mo” Drayton, the former executive director of the Mecklenburg County Democratic Party. Her opponent, Angela White Edwards, is a Republican.
And for the two open Mecklenburg County Water & Soil Conservation District supervisor positions, the BPC endorsed chair Barbara Bleiweis and Michael Betterly. Bleiweis is seeking her third term on the District. She also serves as president of the North Carolina Association of Water and Soil Conservation Districts after being appointed by Gov. Josh Stein in 2025.
The other two candidates on the ballot for this race will be Long Tran and Makenzie Pearce. Jillian King recently suspended her campaign after her family decided to move out of state within a year; however, her name will still appear on the ballot.
The Black Political Caucus of Charlotte-Mecklenburg has endorsed, from left, Barbara Bleiweis and Michael Betterly for the two open Mecklenburg County Water & Soil Conservation District supervisor positions.
This is a nonpartisan election, so candidates’ parties will not appear beside their names on the ballot. All are Democrats, except for Tran, who is an unaffiliated candidate.
The caucus is also urging voters to vote “yes” on all three bonds on the City of Charlotte ballot, and “against” all three constitutional amendments.
The bonds would allow the city of Charlotte to take out a total of $425M for capital projects in three categories: affordable housing ($125M), transportation ($280M) and neighborhoods ($20M).
The amendments would require state legislators to enact laws limiting how much property taxes can increase by; require all voters to present photo ID at the polls; and cap the state income tax rate at 3.5%.
Additional endorsements from the Black Political Caucus of Cabarrus County are here.
The election is Nov. 3. Early voting starts Oct. 15.
Rachel Black is a reporter and writer for The Election Hub. Reach her at rachel@theelectionhub.org.
For information on this and other races on the ballot in Mecklenburg, Gaston and Cabarrus counties and beyond, check out The Election Hub. It is a project of the Civic Knowledge Initiative, a nonpartisan nonprofit based in Charlotte that makes it easy for every citizen to find, understand and act on reliable information about their local government and elected officials.
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