Why this NC teacher switched parties to run against party-switching Tricia Cotham
A Charlotte-area legislator who shook up North Carolina politics when she switched parties now faces a primary challenge from another newly minted Republican.
State House Rep. Tricia Cotham gave Republicans a veto-proof supermajority in the legislature when she left the Democratic Party for the GOP in 2023. Democrats poured more than $1 million into a run against her in 2024, but Cotham secured another term by a razor-thin margin of 216 votes.
Should she run again in southeast Mecklenburg’s District 105 in 2026, Cotham will be up against Kelly VanHorn in the Republican primary, a teacher who State Board of Elections records show previously voted as a Democrat. In North Carolina voters must register unaffiliated or as a member of a political party to vote in that party’s primary.
VanHorn, whose previous political involvement includes work with the North Carolina Association of Educators and American Federation of Teachers, told The Charlotte Observer she comes from a politically diverse family and was an “independent” when she first moved to the Charlotte area.
“I think that both parties are evolving,” she said of her political beliefs.
Asked about her party switch, Van Horn quoted the preamble to the party rules adopted at the GOP’s 2024 national convention, which says the Republican Party “is the party of liberty, the party of equality, of opportunity for all, and favoritism for none.”
“That is something I stand for … I’m running as a Republican because I want to give people a choice,” she said.
VanHorn said redistricting also influenced her decision to run as a Republican. The GOP-controlled legislature redrew Cotham’s district after her party switch. It’s now 51.3% Republican to 46.6% Democrat, according to Dave’s Redistricting, which analyzes voter data to determine districts’ party lean.
“People are going to say it, ‘You switched to be a Republican for this election.’ Well, the legislature gerrymandered,” VanHorn said.
Education will be a central focus of her campaign, VanHorn said, including advocating for funding for teacher pay and programs for students with disabilities.
“Tricia had the backing of educators because she told us that she was for fully funding public schools … When it came time to vote throughout her tenure, if hasn’t felt like she has fully supported all of the students in our community,” VanHorn said of her opponent.
On school vouchers, a controversial education issue in the General Assembly in recent years, VanHorn said she’s a staunch supporter of public schools but not “anti-charter (school) or anti-voucher at all.” In more than 20 years of teaching, she said she’s seen “really great” charter and private schools provide individualized education opportunities for students with specific needs.
“I want to run on a pro-fully funding public schools platform while also realizing there is room to give choice,” she said.
VanHorn said she also opposed the transportation referendum on the 2024 ballot over cuts to the eastern leg of a planned light rail line and concerns about whether local leaders would follow through on the plan they promoted to voters. Cotham was the primary sponsor of the legislation allowing the referendum.
VanHorn said she wants to run an issue-oriented campaign rather than focus on party allegiance and would be an independent voice in the legislature if elected.
“I can’t say I’ll always vote with one group or another … I’m not just going to blindly say, ‘My party says this,’” VanHorn said.
Cotham hasn’t officially filed for reelection as of Wednesday morning, according to the Mecklenburg County Board of Elections’ public list. Former Matthews Commissioner Ken McCool has filed to run as a Democrat in the district.
Candidate filing ends at noon Dec. 19, and primary elections are scheduled for March.
VanHorn isn’t the only Charlotte-area candidate running after a party switch.
Former Democratic state Senate candidate Kate Barr —-who made headlines in 2024 for her campaign slogan “Clear eyes, full heart, can’t win” while running in a heavily Republican district — announced in November she would change parties in name only to run against Republican U.S. Rep. Tim Moore.
This story was originally published December 10, 2025 at 11:37 AM.
