A second prominent Democrat is entering the race for North Carolina governor in 2024
Former North Carolina Supreme Court Justice Michael Morgan, who just stepped down from the court last week, has entered the Democratic primary for governor in 2024.
His candidacy upends a primary that thus far had just one candidate, Attorney General Josh Stein — long considered the heir apparent to Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper.
But Morgan says he has a better chance of winning the general election.
Morgan, 67, who previously told The News & Observer he was considering a run, made it official on Tuesday, after an exclusive interview at his home in Raleigh on Monday.
“I will be the most qualified, and the best qualified, and certainly the most electable to be governor” on the Democratic ticket, he said.
Morgan said he began thinking about running for governor soon after he decided not to run for another term on the court due to age restrictions. He said he has a one-of-a-kind skill set with 44 years of service in state government, 34 years of that on the bench in four different judgeships.
“I feel as though that unique blend of what I bring as a judge, a longtime participant in, an observer of, the state government system — traveling the state, meeting people across the board, whether it was in my job or whether it was related to my own personal extracurricular activities — I just felt as though being in the executive spot and being able to make the greatest and most effective difference I could was where I should place my energies,” Morgan said.
Morgan will face an uphill battle in the primary, as Stein has amassed millions in donations and several endorsements, though at the time the attorney general was unopposed. This past week, Cooper endorsed Stein as Morgan, who had previously said he was considering a run, stepped down from the Supreme Court.
Running against a ‘cavalcade’ who chose Stein early
Morgan questioned Democrats for already backing Stein so far ahead of the election, and without any primary challengers.
“It’s unusual and even disheartening that there would be such an early backing of anyone, because the field has yet to be filled, in terms of those that would potentially run,” he said.
Morgan said it is a disservice to have a “cavalcade of individuals who are in the leadership of the Democratic Party to coalesce behind just one individual,” when other qualified candidates may also want to serve.
Stein, who had been long expected to seek the Executive Mansion, announced his run in January. He immediately criticized Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the Republican frontrunner. Stein is finishing his second term as attorney general, a position Cooper also held before running for governor.
When Stein announced early this year, he said that “Robinson wants to tell you who you can marry, when you’ll be pregnant, and who you should hate.”
“I’m running for governor because I believe in a very different North Carolina,” Stein said. “One rooted in our shared values of freedom, justice and opportunity for everyone.”
In nearly eight months since announcing, Stein has continued to garner endorsements from a large variety of supporters and donors.
Asked about starting his campaign and fundraising, Morgan said he’s just starting his first week off of the bench. Fundraising begins with his campaign announcement, he said.
Morgan said that Stein “may have the superior treasury, but I have the superior candidacy.”
“And I feel as though as a result of that, that although he and his people continue to tout the fact that he’s raised more money than anyone else in the history of a gubernatorial race, that nonetheless, the people will see through that and understand that elections can’t be bought,” Morgan said.
“They will understand that there has to be a message that resonates with the voters, and that it has to be a candidate who represents their interests, that is electable, and who can best represent North Carolina,” he added.
Morgan said his runs for statewide office brought a higher percentage of votes compared to Stein’s runs for attorney general. He’s disappointed that Cooper endorsed Stein last week, saying “the responsible thing to do” is to wait to see who filed. He said that party leaders should not “pick winners and losers among us.”
“It’s also disheartening because the people need to decide who their leaders are,” Morgan said. “This should not be this tendency that is growing, for those that are in positions of power to choose the people’s leaders. That mutes the people’s voices.”
North Carolina’s first Black governor?
The race for North Carolina governor is already getting national attention, and the first two Republican gubernatorial primary debates are being held this week. Robinson, who has been a lightning rod for controversial comments, is not going to the debates.
Robinson and Morgan are both African American, so if they win their respective primaries, whoever wins the general election would be the first African American governor of North Carolina.
Morgan said he’s already been “the first” in a number of ways in his life, including attending an all-white elementary school in his New Bern hometown and being the first Black drum major in his high school band.
“History is not lost on me. ... I am one who subscribes to the motto, ‘To whom much is given, much is expected,’” Morgan said. “I’ve been given much. And I’m truly blessed and truly thankful for that. And as a result, I just continue to go forward and try to give the best of me that I can give, and don’t really dwell upon the historic aspects, whatever I’ve been able to achieve. I just try to do my best and let history record the rest.”
Nearly all the state’s previous governors have been white men. The state has had one woman governor, Democratic Gov. Bev Perdue, who served from 2009 to 2013. There are no women running for governor in 2024.
Taking on Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson
Morgan said if he faces Robinson in the general election, he’ll be Robinson’s “worst nightmare.”
“I would love to have the opportunity to approach him toe to toe, eye to eye, in terms of some of the extreme views that he has, which do no good for any of our citizens of North Carolina when it comes to the hatred, the belittling and the disparagement of North Carolinians,” he said.
Robinson has a “laundry list” of disparaging comments, Morgan said, with “nasty and ugly” descriptions of people. Robinson has made several speeches attacking LGBTQ+ people, as well as questioning climate change and public school teachers.
As leaders, “we’re supposed to be lifting people up,” Morgan said, calling Robinson’s behavior despicable and disgusting.
“That which he represents is terrible, in terms of being judgmental of individuals, and stirring others to do the same,” Morgan said. “And as to campaigning against him, I particularly would welcome the opportunity to catch whatever he has to say, chew it up, spit it out, and enjoy doing it.”
Morgan said he believes that it “doesn’t matter who you want to be, doesn’t matter who you love, doesn’t matter what kind of job you have, what kind of religion you pursue — you have a right to be who you want to be as long as you’re not violating the law.”
He said Robinson also wants to rewrite history as it’s taught in schools and represents those who want to go back to the past.
“I feel as though we’re at a crossroads,” Morgan said. “We can go and be progressive and move forward. Or we can be negative and be regressive. I want to be progressive and build upon the rich history that North Carolina has to move its people forward.”
Morgan’s stance on issues
Morgan’s top five campaign issues are:
▪ Education. He supports implementing the Leandro court decision for K-12 public school funding and opposes any public funding for private school scholarships. Teacher salaries are not keeping pace, Morgan said, and shortages of teachers and bus drivers show “an abysmal record” of legislative action addressing it.
“Every child is entitled to have a sound and basic education,” he said. “And yet the legislature has seen fit to punt the necessary constitutional right and have left those in rural areas languishing when they should be able to get that sound, basic education that the Constitution affords them.”
Morgan said the current Republican supermajority legislature is “crippling our public school system in such a way that it is doing damage to the very fabric of our school system in the state of North Carolina.”
▪ Affordable health care. Morgan said beyond Medicaid expansion, he wants more affordable prescription drugs and more affordable health insurance plans.
▪ Gun violence. The availability of guns is what’s “making (gun violence) so reprehensible to our society,” Morgan said. “Everybody has been touched by this, whether it is communities that are urban, those that are rural, those that are suburban, it doesn’t matter. People cannot be safe, where they go, anywhere.”
“And certainly in our schools,” he added, “where our children should be concentrating on education, as opposed to practicing drills on what they need to do to keep themselves safe in the event of an attack.”
▪ Pocketbook issues. Morgan said North Carolinians are sometimes working multiple jobs and yet still feel like they’re on a treadmill and can’t afford groceries, housing and a good quality of life.
▪ Criminal justice “reformatting.” The state needs to look at criminal record expungement for some offenses, Morgan said, and reentry opportunities and job training for people coming out of jail.
“We need to change the paradigm and look at the dynamics, and not continue to punish people based upon what they did wrong after they’ve paid their debt to society and they want to move forward and make things better for themselves and their families,” he said.
The North Carolina primary election is March 5.
This story was originally published September 12, 2023 at 10:00 AM with the headline "A second prominent Democrat is entering the race for North Carolina governor in 2024."
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