Orange County Sample Ballot & Voter Guide 2026
18 candidates are on the November 3, 2026 ballot across 12 Orange County races, led by the Orange County Board of Commissioners At-Large contest.
County offices
Board of Commissioners At-LargeKaren Stegman (D) · Jeffrey Hoagland (R)
Karen Stegman Democratic
- Expanding access to affordable housing
- Addressing inequities in the property tax valuation process
- Effective use of the 2024 school bond
Per IndyWeek.
About Karen Stegman
Stegman is a consultant on non-profit strategy and development with about 25 years of community-development, education and public-health work, including with the Orange County Family Resource Centers, per IndyWeek. She served two terms on the Chapel Hill Town Council before running for the Orange County Board of Commissioners, per her campaign site.
Jeffrey Hoagland Republican
- Making sure law enforcement is properly staffed, trained and funded
- Fiscal restraint on county tax increases and new funding commitments
Per the NC Newsline.
About Jeffrey Hoagland
Hoagland is an engineer running for the Orange County Board of Commissioners at-large seat; it is his third campaign for elected office in three years, per NC Newsline. No campaign website was found for him as of this county's certified filing period. No campaign website was found as of September 8, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for Jeffrey Hoagland.
Open seat: sitting at-large commissioner Sally Greene did not file for re-election, per the Daily Tar Heel. Karen Stegman won the March 3, 2026 Democratic primary over Adam Beeman with about 77 percent of the vote, per the Daily Tar Heel, and faces Republican Jeffrey Hoagland on the November 3, 2026 ballot.
Full race pageBoard of Commissioners District 1Rani Dasi (D)
Unopposed: still on your ballot.
Rani Dasi Democratic Incumbent
Rani Dasi is a sitting Orange County commissioner, per the Board of County Commissioners' roster. No campaign website was found as of September 27, 2026.
Jamezetta Bedford won the March 3, 2026 Democratic primary over Maria T. Palmer unopposed by a Republican, but died June 21, 2026 following complications from a medical procedure, per the Daily Tar Heel. The Orange County Democratic Party executive committee selected Rani Dasi, a Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education member, as the new nominee (about 67 percent of committee votes over five other applicants), and the Board of Commissioners appointed her to fill the seat on August 25, 2026, per Chapelboro.com. Dasi is unopposed on the November 3, 2026 ballot; the certified list decides who prints.
Full race pageBoard of Commissioners District 2Beth Bronson (D) · Louis Capitanio (R)
Beth Bronson Democratic
- Managing growth responsibly through long-range planning
- Environmental conservation
- Thoughtful, transparent leadership that listens to residents
Per the Daily Tar Heel.
About Beth Bronson
Bronson is a clinical research coordinator at Duke University Hospital and a lifelong Orange County resident who currently serves on the county's Planning Board and Board of Adjustment, per the Daily Tar Heel.
Louis Capitanio Republican
Louis Capitanio appears on the November 3, 2026 ballot for Orange County Board of Commissioners District 2, per the county elections office's certified candidate list. No campaign website was found as of September 8, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for Louis Capitanio.
Incumbent commissioner Earl McKee was not renominated in the March 3, 2026 Democratic primary; Beth Bronson led by a narrow margin that held after a recount (about 25 votes, per Chapelboro.com). Bronson faces Republican Louis Capitanio on the November 3, 2026 ballot.
Full race pageClerk of Superior CourtMark Kleinschmidt (D)
Unopposed: still on your ballot.
Mark Kleinschmidt Democratic Incumbent
Kleinschmidt has served as Orange County Clerk of Superior Court since 2018 and was previously Chapel Hill's mayor from 2009 to 2015 after eight years on the town council, per the NC Judicial Branch. No campaign website was found as of September 8, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for Mark Kleinschmidt.
Incumbent Mark Kleinschmidt, Clerk of Superior Court since 2018, is unopposed on the November 3, 2026 ballot.
Full race pageRegister of DeedsAmy Jo McLamb (D)
Unopposed: still on your ballot.
Amy Jo McLamb Democratic
- Expanding fraud alert protections to cover parcel identification numbers, not just owner names
- Continuing conservation of historical deed books, plat maps and other aging records
- Cross-training staff to serve in every section of the office
Per the campaign site.
About Amy Jo McLamb
McLamb has served in the Orange County Register of Deeds office for 26 years, working through every position from entry level to leadership, per the campaign site. She has implemented modernization initiatives including new software systems, electronic PIN assignment, and real-time document scanning, per the campaign site.
Incumbent Mark Chilton is retiring after 12 years. Amy Jo McLamb, the office's assistant register with 26 years there, won the March 3, 2026 Democratic primary over former county commissioner Penny Rich and is unopposed on the November 3, 2026 ballot.
Full race pageSheriffCharles Blackwood (D)
Unopposed: still on your ballot.
Charles Blackwood Democratic
- Expanding mental health and substance abuse services
- Responding to the opioid epidemic through innovative programs
- Pursuing bail and bond reform alongside school safety initiatives
Per the campaign site.
About Charles Blackwood
Blackwood served 45 years with the Orange County Sheriff's Office, beginning in December 1980 and rising through the ranks to major of operations before retiring in December 2012 to run for sheriff, per the campaign site. He was elected the 47th Sheriff of Orange County and has since held multiple state-level leadership appointments, per the campaign site.
Incumbent Sheriff Charles Blackwood, first elected in 2014, is unopposed on the November 3, 2026 ballot.
Full race pageDistrict Attorney, District 18Jeff Nieman (D)
Unopposed: still on your ballot.
Jeff Nieman Democratic
Nieman is a lifelong resident of Orange County who has worked as an Assistant District Attorney in the district for more than 16 years, handling misdemeanor and felony cases. Nieman created Outreach Court, a diversion program for defendants experiencing homelessness, and co-founded the NC Driver's License Restoration Project, per the campaign site. Nieman has also served as an adjunct professor at North Carolina Central University School of Law and is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
District 18 covers Orange and Chatham counties. Incumbent DA Jeff Nieman, in office since 2022, is unopposed on the November 3, 2026 ballot.
Full race pageJudges
North Carolina District Court Judge, District 18, Seat 1C. Todd Roper (D)
Unopposed: still on your ballot.
C. Todd Roper Democratic
- Making balanced and impartial decisions based on the law and facts of each case
- Working to help people caught in systemic problems regain control of their lives
Per the campaign site.
About C. Todd Roper
Roper has practiced law for 30 years in Orange and Chatham counties and was appointed a district court judge by Governor Roy Cooper in 2020, per the campaign site. He has presided over thousands of cases spanning juvenile, civil, criminal, custody and domestic violence matters, per the campaign site.
C. Todd Roper (Democratic) is unopposed on the November 3, 2026 ballot for North Carolina District Court Judge, District 18, Seat 1. Voters across Chatham and Orange counties vote on this seat, per North Carolina General Statutes Chapter 7A. North Carolina judicial races have been partisan since the 2018 court reorganization. The field is the State Board of Elections' certified general-election candidate list (read September 7, 2026).
Full race pageDistricts and boards
Soil and Water Conservation District SupervisorNonpartisan race · Richal Vanhook · W. Chris Hogan · K. Alexander Foreman
Richal Vanhook Nonpartisan Incumbent
Richal Vanhook serves as Secretary/Treasurer of the Orange County Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors, an elected seat, per Orange County government. No campaign website was found as of September 27, 2026.
W. Chris Hogan Nonpartisan Incumbent
Hogan is a farmer from a family that has farmed north and west of Chapel Hill for nine generations, and he is an elected member of the Orange Soil and Water Conservation District board, per the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Business Hall of Fame and the county's board page. The Hall of Fame says his family has served 74 consecutive years on the district board, with his grandfather Henry Hogan before him. No campaign website was found as of September 29, 2026.
K. Alexander Foreman Nonpartisan
No campaign website was found as of September 27, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for K. Alexander Foreman.
Nonpartisan; two of the district's three elected seats are up in 2026, vote for 2. Incumbents Richal Vanhook and W. Chris Hogan are both seeking re-election against challenger K. Alexander Foreman, per the district's official board page. This contest is on the November 3, 2026 ballot.
Full race pageBy address
These seats are elected by district; only the district covering your address is on your ballot.
Orange County is split across 2 North Carolina House districts.
Find your districts by addressNorth Carolina House: 2 districtsDistricts 50, 56
North Carolina House District 50Renee A. Price (D)
Unopposed: still on your ballot.
Renee A. Price Democratic Incumbent
Renee A. Price has represented North Carolina House District 50, covering Orange and Caswell counties, since 2022, per the campaign site. Price serves on the Appropriations and Higher Education committees, per the campaign site.
Renee A. Price (Democratic) is the only candidate on the November 3 ballot; Renee A. Price is the sitting member, per the General Assembly's roster. Party nominees were chosen at the March 3 primary (a second primary is held only when no one reaches 30 percent plus one); unaffiliated candidates qualified by petition. The field is the State Board of Elections' certified general-election candidate list (read September 7, 2026). This seat is elected by district; only the district covering your address appears on your ballot.
Full race pageNorth Carolina House District 56Matthew P. Clements (Libertarian) · Allen Buansi (D)
Matthew P. Clements Libertarian
- Privatize North Carolina's alcohol distribution system
Per Appalachian Chronicle.
About Matthew P. Clements
Matthew P. Clements has written commentary arguing from a free-market perspective for privatizing North Carolina's alcohol distribution system, per the Appalachian Chronicle. No campaign website was found as of September 7, 2026.
Allen Buansi Democratic Incumbent
- Making North Carolina more affordable
- Expanding accessibility to services and government
- Building a more inclusive state
Per the campaign site.
About Allen Buansi
Buansi is a Chapel Hill Town Council member and civil rights attorney who previously worked at the North Carolina Department of Justice on opioid crisis response and as deputy director of the UNC Center for Civil Rights, per the campaign site. He holds a law degree from the University of North Carolina and a degree from Dartmouth College, per the campaign site.
Matthew P. Clements (Libertarian), Allen Buansi (Democratic) meet on the November 3 ballot; Allen Buansi is the sitting member, per the General Assembly's roster. Party nominees were chosen at the March 3 primary (a second primary is held only when no one reaches 30 percent plus one); unaffiliated candidates qualified by petition. The field is the State Board of Elections' certified general-election candidate list (read September 7, 2026). This seat is elected by district; only the district covering your address appears on your ballot.
Full race pageNorth Carolina Senate District 23Laura Pichardo (R) · Jonah Garson (D)
Laura Pichardo Republican
- Expand broadband access in rural areas
- Support rural hospitals and expand telehealth
- Supports the state's current 12-week limit on abortion with exceptions for rape, incest, and the mother's health
Per the campaign site.
About Laura Pichardo
Pichardo is a senior accounts payable analyst with more than nine years of financial management experience, previously at Hanesbrands Inc., per the campaign site. She holds an MBA from Winston-Salem State University and a bachelor's degree in economics from UNC Greensboro, and serves as treasurer of the Caswell County Republican Party, per the campaign site.
Jonah Garson Democratic Incumbent
- Supporting competitive legislative and judicial races statewide
- Reforming the state's electoral and democratic institutions
Per the campaign site.
About Jonah Garson
Jonah Garson was appointed to the North Carolina Senate on April 10, 2026 to represent District 23, covering Caswell, Orange, and Person counties, per the NC General Assembly. He is based in Chapel Hill, per his campaign site.
Laura Pichardo (Republican), Jonah Garson (Democratic) meet on the November 3 ballot; Jonah Garson is the sitting member, per the General Assembly's roster. Party nominees were chosen at the March 3 primary (a second primary is held only when no one reaches 30 percent plus one); unaffiliated candidates qualified by petition. The field is the State Board of Elections' certified general-election candidate list (read September 7, 2026). This seat is elected by district; only the district covering your address appears on your ballot.
Full race pageSee your full ballot
Voting info and more
Voting info and more
Verify your ballot with the official election office.
Cross-check every race and candidate with the official election office. Official sources are the final word.
North Carolina nominees were set by the March 3 primary; a candidate clearing 30 percent plus one avoids a second primary, and unopposed nominees still print on the November 3 ballot, per the State Board of Elections.
Who is on the ballot in Orange County, North Carolina on November 3, 2026?
Orange County sample ballot 2026: see where the board of commissioners at-large and board of commissioners candidates stand on housing and health care. Every candidate profile on this page names the official filing or campaign source it came from.
When is the 2026 general election in North Carolina?
Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Registration deadlines, early voting dates and mail ballot rules for North Carolina are listed on the North Carolina election hub. North Carolina election hub →
How do I see my exact Orange County ballot?
Enter your ZIP code in the lookup for the statewide and congressional races on every ballot in the county, or a full street address to add the county, city and district contests for that location. Look up your ballot →
North Carolina statewide racesEvery North Carolina race on this county's ballot.All North Carolina ballot measures3 statewide ballot measuresCandidate roster last updated Sep 29, 2026 from official election sources.