Democrat Verla Insko defeated Republican Marcus Cooke and Libertarian Matthew Clements in the race for District 56 of the North Carolina State House of Representatives.
This will make Insko's 12th term in the General Assembly, where she currently serves as the Democratic Whip for the N.C. House.
With 100 percent of precincts reporting, unofficial results from the North Carolina State Board of Elections show Insko winning with 86.07 percent of the votes while Cooke and Clements captured 11.39 percent and 2.55 percent, respectively.
The 56th District comprises precincts in Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Orange County.
During the 2016-2018 legislative session, Republicans held a supermajority in the General Assembly, and the North Carolina Democratic Party is looking to break the majority in the state legislature this election.
“I think (the Democrats) could take the House," said Mark Marcoplos, an Orange County Commissioner. "If that happens, we can sustain Cooper’s veto. We could actually play good defense.”
Insko, a retired health program administrator, is a proponent of expanding Medicaid, raising teacher pay and increasing the minimum wage. She also supports automatic voter registration and an independent redistricting commission for drawing districts. Insko is against voter identification requirements.
Insko will be joined in the General Assembly by incumbents State Senator Valerie Foushee and Representative Graig Meyer.
