Raymond Smith Jr.

Raymond Smith
Member of the North Carolina House of Representatives
from the 21st district
In office
January 1, 2019 – January 1, 2023
Preceded byLarry Bell
Succeeded byJohn Bell (Redistricting)
Personal details
Born (1961-10-15) October 15, 1961 (age 63)
Goldsboro, North Carolina, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseCortrina
EducationNorth Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (BA)
North Carolina Central University (MPA)
Fayetteville State University (EdD)
WebsiteOfficial website

Raymond Edward Smith Jr. (born October 15, 1961) is a former Democratic member of the North Carolina House of Representatives, who represented the 21st district (including portions of Wayne and Sampson counties) from 2019 to 2023.[1][2]

Career

[edit]

Smith won the election on November 6, 2018 from the platform of Democratic Party. He secured fifty-three percent of the vote while his closest rival Republican Robert Freeman Sr. secured forty-seven percent.[3] He was re-elected in 2020.

In 2022, Smith challenged incumbent state senator Toby Fitch in the Democratic primary for North Carolina's 4th Senate district. Smith lost the primary, winning only 45.5% of the vote to Fitch's 54.5%.[4][5]

Smith currently plans to run for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina in the 2024 election.[6]

Electoral history

[edit]

2022

[edit]
North Carolina Senate 4th district Democratic primary election, 2022[7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Toby Fitch (incumbent) 6,994 54.48%
Democratic Raymond Smith Jr. 5,843 45.52%
Total votes 12,837 100%

2020

[edit]
North Carolina House of Representatives 21st district general election, 2020[8]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Raymond Smith Jr. (incumbent) 17,632 53.00%
Republican Brent Heath 15,633 47.00%
Total votes 33,265 100%
Democratic hold

2018

[edit]
North Carolina House of Representatives 21st district Democratic primary election, 2018[9]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Raymond Smith Jr. 1,511 53.17%
Democratic Eugene Pearsall 1,331 46.83%
Total votes 2,842 100%
North Carolina House of Representatives 21st district general election, 2018[10]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Raymond Smith Jr. 12,041 52.65%
Republican Robert E. Freeman 10,829 47.35%
Total votes 22,870 100%
Democratic hold

Committee assignments

[edit]

2021-2022 session

[edit]
  • Education - Community Colleges
  • Local Government
  • Federal Relations and American Indian Affairs
  • Finance
  • Homeland Security, Military, and Veterans Affairs
  • LGBTQ+ Rights and Restrictions

2019–2020 session

[edit]
  • House Appropriations on Health and Human Services
  • Appropriations
  • Homeland Security, Military, and Veterans Affairs
  • Transportation

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "The Voter's Self Defense System". Vote Smart. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  2. ^ "Raymond Smith Jr". Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  3. ^ "North Carolina Election Results - Election Results 2018 - The New York Times". The New York Times. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  4. ^ "Several incumbents lose N.C. legislative primaries". Spectrum News 1 North Carolina. Associated Press. May 18, 2022. Retrieved August 10, 2022.
  5. ^ "NC SBE Election Contest Details". er.ncsbe.gov. Retrieved August 10, 2022.
  6. ^ "Travis Fain on Twitter: "Spoke to @RayESmithJr tonight, and he's running for Lt. Governor in 2024. That's the first announcement I've heard in that race. Democrat representing Wayne and Sampson counties in the House. #ncga #ncpol"". Twitter. June 27, 2022. Retrieved August 10, 2022.
  7. ^ [1] North Carolina State Board of Elections.
  8. ^ [2] North Carolina State Board of Elections.
  9. ^ [3] North Carolina State Board of Elections.
  10. ^ [4] North Carolina State Board of Elections.
North Carolina House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the North Carolina House of Representatives
from the 21st district

2019–2023
Succeeded by