Several Duke alumni and former professors and employees were on the ballot this midterm election. They’ve seen a mixed bag of results as elections come to a close across the nation.
US Senate
Cheri Beasley, Law School ’18, North Carolina’s Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, lost the contentious race to Republican nominee Ted Budd. The close contest throughout the night resulted in Beasley falling to Budd by about 135,000 votes.
Republican Sen. Rand Paul, School of Medicine ’88, has represented Kentucky in the U.S. Senate since 2011. The Associated Press called the Race for Paul. He won his reelection campaign against Democratic challenger Charles Booker and successfully secured a third term in the Senate.
US House of Representatives
Democratic Rep. Mike Levin, Law School ’05, ran against Republican candidate Brian Maryott to secure a third term in the U.S. House of Representatives to represent California’s 49th Congressional District. At time of publication, 51% of the vote is in and Levin leads by a margin of two points. The New York Times estimates that Levin will win once all the ballots are counted.
Democratic Rep. Scott Peters, Trinity ’80, who ran for re-election to represent California’s 52nd Congressional District, defeated Republican challenger Corey Gustafson. With 47% of the ballots counted, Peters received 60% of the vote.
Governorships
Democratic Gov. Jay Robert "J.B." Pritzker, Trinity ’87, has served as governor of Illinois since 2019 and was running for re-election. He won by about 422,000 votes against Republican challenger Darren Bailey, the Associated Press called the race. Pritzker is currently a member of the Duke University Board of Trustees.
NC General Assembly
Democrat N.C. Sen. Mike Woodard, Trinity ’81, who used to work for Duke Health as a financial administrator, has represented District 22 in the North Carolina State Senate since 2013 and ran for re-election: he won against Republican opponent Larry Coleman. Libertarian candidate Ray Ubinger, Trinity ’87, also ran for the District 22 position but lost to Woodard.
Libertarian Guy Meilleur, a “board-certified master arborist” and was previously an instructor at Duke, lost his House election for a seat representing District 30 to Marcia Morey.
Judicial races
Republican Richard Dietz, Law School ’20, who ran for seat three of the state Supreme Court, won against Democrat opponent Lucy Inman by a narrow margin.
Republican John Tyson, Fuqua ’88, successfully obtained re-election to seat 10 of the Court of Appeals, defeating Democrat opponent Gale Murray Adams.
Democrat Darren Jackson, Law School ’96 also sought re-elections to seat 11 of the Court of Appeals, but lost to Republican nominee Michael J. Stading.
Dr. Julee Tate Flood, a former adjunct professor at Duke University’s Paralegal Program, first-time Republican candidate for the Court of Appeals, defeated Democrat Carolyn Jennings Thompson.
Local Races
Incumbents Aminah Thompson, Trinity ’03, and Satana Deberry, Law School ’94 and Fuqua ’06, ran unopposed for reelection as Clerk of Superior Court in Durham County and District Attorney District 16, respectively.
Democrat Clarence Birkhead, former Duke University Police Department chief, won reelection for Durham Sheriff against Maria Jocys, as called by The News & Observer.
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Ishani Raha is a Pratt junior and a senior editor of The Chronicle's 119th volume.
Senou Kounouho is a Pratt sophomore and a university news editor of The Chronicle's 119th volume.