Here’s Who Won in Cumberland County: 2026 General Election Results

The blue wave that swept across North Carolina on Tuesday also landed in Cumberland County, pushing one Republican incumbent out of office and stymying the electoral hopes of a longtime school board member.

Statewide, Democrats flipped a U.S. Senate seat and the state House while also putting Democrats in the lead in 10 of the state’s 14 congressional districts. That includes Democrat Richard Ojeda defeating U.S. Rep. Richard Hudson in the 9th Congressional District. In the 7th District, U.S. Rep. David Rouzer, the Republican incumbent, holds a narrow lead over Democrat Kimberly Hardy. Both House seats include Cumberland County.

In local races, Democrat Janene Ackles defeated Republican state Rep. Diane Wheatley in a rematch of their 2024 race. Two Republicans—Greg West and Ron Ross—lost to Democrats in their bids for seats on the Board of Commissioners. 

In two judicial races, incumbent Democrats easily defeated their Republican opponents. In several other races, Democrats ran unopposed.

Races for the Board of Education and Soil and Water Conservation District are nonpartisan.

The results are unofficial until certified by the state.

State Legislature

In an election that flipped the state House to Democrats, bringing an end to the GOP’s 16-year hold over the General Assembly, a Republican lawmaker in Cumberland County was ousted. 

Democrat Janene Ackles defeated Republican state Rep. Diane Wheatley, who was seeking a fourth term in the District 43 seat. Wheatley beat Ackles in 2024, but lost the 2026 rematch 52.12% to 47.88%.

Three other Democrats ran unopposed—Rep. Mike Colvin in District 42, Rep. Charles Smith in District 44, and Rep. Frances Jackson in District 45.

Cumberland’s split state Senate delegation remained in place.

Sen. Val Applewhite, a Democrat, won a third term in District 19, defeating Venus de la Cruz 73.56% to 26.44%. Sen. Tom McInnis, a Republican, won a seventh term in District 21, downing Democrat Paul Taylor. Though Taylor won Cumberland, McInnis overwhelmingly won Moore County and took the race 54.38% to 45.62%.

Overall, Republicans still control the state Senate but Democrats closed the gap and broke the GOP’s veto-proof supermajority.

Sheriff

There’s a new sheriff in town.

Democrat Troy McDufflie, an Army veteran with more than 35 years of law enforcement experience, easily defeated Republican LaRue Windham. McDuffie took 66.96% of the vote to Windham’s 33.04%. 

With Democrats maintaining control of the office for more than 30 years, the race was essentially decided during March’s four-candidate primary. McDuffie prevailed with 49.55% of the vote, unseating incumbent Sheriff Jonathan Morgan, who was appointed to replace the retiring Sheriff Ennis Wright. In 2025. Wright backed Morgan for the appointment, but supported McDuffie in the 2026 race. 

District Attorney

Veteran prosecutor Billy West, a Democrat, ran opposed to win his fifth term. Prior to taking office in 2011, West was a senior assistant District Attorney for a decade. He’s also quite the golfer.

Clerk

Superior Court Clerk Lisa Scales, a Democrat, ran unopposed for a third term. She was appointed to the position in 2017 and first won election in 2018. Scales’ started working for Cumberland County in 1986 when she joined the Register of Deeds office.

Board of Commissioners

Two Democrats won seats on the seven-member Board of Commissioners, dispatching two Republicans in a four-way race for two at-large seats. 

Former Commissioner Charles Evans (54,270 votes) will return to office after a four-year hiatus, and Commissioner Veronica Jones (51,203 votes) won re-election. They defeated Republicans Greg West (31,920 votes), a Cumberland County Board of Education member, and Ron Ross (23,971 votes), who has sought a commissioners’ seat several times.

Two District 1 seats were also on the ballot. Incumbent Democrat Glenn Adams and Democrat Sheila Cuffee ran unopposed.

Board of Education

The nine-member Board of Education will see two new faces. Some 16 candidates competed for three at-large seats.

Incumbent Jacquelyn Brown, the board’s vice chair and a retired teacher assistant, won a second term. She’ll be joined on the board by newcomers Tom Hatch and Broxie Pone, who are both retired educators. 

Hatch placed first with 26,038 votes, followed by Brown with 22,240 and Pone with 20,680.

Cumberland Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors

The five-member board—three elected members and two appointed by the state—governs the district, which leads local conservation efforts through technical assistance, educational initiatives, and cost-share programs. 

These lesser-known races touch on a variety of environmental issues, including erosion, stream restoration, water quality, and farmland preservation. The terms are four years.

Seven candidates, including incumbent Ellison Ellison, were running for two seats in nonpartisan races. Yolanda Volcy placed first with 32,033 votes, while Ellison won another term with 27,792 votes. Volcy replaces Monique McMillan, who did not run for a third term.

The other candidates were Dianna Chambers (26,842 votes), Jeremy Stanley (15,752 votes), Dwayne Waterford (14,221 votes), Chris Rivas (13,070 votes), and Joe Hallatschek (10,276 votes).

Chair C. Wayne Collier, Jr. and Vice Chair Kevin Riddle are appointed, while Josh Ballard was elected in 2024. 

Judges

Three Superior Court judge seats were on the ballot, though only one of the races was competitive. 

In the District 14A Seat 1 race, Democrat incumbent Judge Stephen Craig Stokes defeated Republican Assistant County Attorney Rob Hasty 70.69% to 29.31%. Gov. Josh Stein appointed Stokes, who is a former District Court judge, to the Superior Court bench in March 2025.

In District 14B, Democrat Alicia Flowers ran unopposed, while Democrat Lou Olivera ran unopposed for District 14C Seat 1. Stein appointed Flowers to the bench in December. Olivera, a District Court judge first elected in 2012, was the first elected Hispanic judge in North Carolina history, according to Ballotpedia.

Seven District Court judge seats were on the ballot for the state’s 14th District Court District, which is all of Cumberland County. Only the Seat 5 race was competitive. Incumbent Judge Cheri Siler-Mack, a Democrat, defeated Jonathan Strange, a Republican attorney, 66.18% to 33.82%.

Democrats ran unopposed in the other six District Court races. These are incumbent Chief District Court Judge Tori King (Seat 1), incumbent Judge Frances McDuffie Britt (Seat 2), Sherry Miller (Seat 3), incumbent Judge Tracey Henderson (Seat 4), incumbent Judge Rosalyn Hood (Seat 6), and incumbent Judge Caitlin Evans (Seat 7).

Jason Beck, Dasia Williams, and Paul Woolverton contributed to this story.