At least 22 Latino candidates have filed to run in local, state, and federal races for the North Carolina elections on November 3, 2026.
Within this group of candidates is Major (Ret.) Richard Ojeda, Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives for District 9.
Ojeda faces off in the November 3 elections to current Republican congressman Richard Hudson.
As part of the 'Your Vote is Power' initiative Enlace Latino NC We have sent questionnaires to these latino candidates that include races for the federal House of Representatives, both state houses, district judges, sheriffs, county commissioners, and boards of education.
The goal is to provide our readers with information about who they are, why they decided to run, what their priorities are, and what they propose for the communities. that they seek to represent.
Political affiliation: Democrat
Campaign website: ojedafornc.com
About Richard Ojeda
Ojeda is a retired U.S. Army major and former West Virginia state senator, with a career focused on defending workers and working-class families.
According to his campaign biography, he grew up in a union family in the coalfields of southern West Virginia, where he became intimately familiar with union contracts, fair wages, and working conditions. He served for 24 years in the Army, including overseas deployments and 15 years at Fort Bragg, where he raised his family with his wife.
She also states that she decided to enter politics because, in her view, workers had been ignored by politicians linked to corporations and special interest groups. During her time in the West Virginia Senate, she says she championed workers, public employees, veterans, and working families. She also highlights her support for teachers and school service workers during the 2018 statewide strike.
Later, his family returned to North Carolina, where his children were born and raised.
Looking ahead to his work in Congress, the candidate says he seeks to protect workers' right to unionize, raise wages, defend labor benefits, strengthen Social Security and Medicare, and reduce healthcare costs. He also maintains that the economy should benefit those who do the work more than corporate executives.
Below are the complete questions and answers from the questionnaire conducted by Enlace Latino NC
Why did you decide to apply for this position, and what are the main experiences or qualities that you believe prepare you to perform it?
I'm running for Congress because working people are being harmed while politicians in Washington continue to look out for corporations, billionaires, and themselves.
I spent 24 years in the Army, and I learned that leadership means taking care of your people. That's what's missing in Washington today. Families are working harder and paying more for food, housing, utilities, and health care, while corporations are making record profits. Corruption and special interest money have poisoned our political system. And working seniors are forced to worry about whether the Social Security and Medicare benefits they earned will still be there when they need them.
My priorities are to lower the cost of living for working families, tackle corruption and corporate influence in Washington, and protect and strengthen Social Security and Medicare for our senior citizens.
I'm not running to become part of Washington. I'm running to fight for the people Washington has forgotten.
What do you consider to be the three main issues or challenges that you will have to address in this position and why?
Affordability, the way this country is treating immigrants, and a return to constitutional norms.
First, affordability, because that's what I hear at every doorstep in this district. People are working harder than ever, and yet they still can't afford food, rent, childcare, and health insurance. Inflation is soaring, and wages are stagnating. That's not an accident. It's a decision Washington keeps making in favor of corporations and against working families.
Second, immigration—let's be honest about what's driving it—people are being stopped because of how they look and the language they speak. I'm the grandson of a Mexican immigrant who came here to work in factories and mines. Watching masked agents pull men from landscaping crews, including U.S. citizens, is not the America I wore the uniform for. During one operation in Charlotte, a fifth of the school district stayed home. That's fear disguised as public safety. We need real due process and a path to citizenship based on meeting certain requirements.
Third, the constitutional norms. I swore to defend the Constitution, not a president. When the courts are ignored and elections are treated as mere suggestions, nothing on this list is safe.
If elected, what do you hope to achieve during your term in office and how would you evaluate whether your administration was successful?
I want to leave people with more money in their pockets and with more of a voice in their own country.
That means cutting taxes on the first $45,000 a family earns, linking the minimum wage to inflation so paychecks stop falling behind, and protecting Social Security and Medicare by raising the income threshold instead of the retirement age. It means paying teachers like professionals instead of firing them from classrooms. It means VA healthcare that actually serves a soldier when they return home to Fort Bragg. It means an immigration system with due process and a path to citizenship based on meeting certain requirements, instead of undercover agents in parking lots.
I won't measure success by the bills that bear my name or by how many times I appear on television. I'll measure it at the kitchen table. Can a family in Moore County afford groceries without having to use a credit card? Is the rural hospital in this district still open? Can a child whose parents came here to work go to school without fear? Does a veteran receive care?
If the answer is yes, I did my job. If not, I don't care what else I managed to pass.
The Latino population continues to grow in North Carolina. Given the specific responsibilities of the position you are seeking, how do you plan to address the needs and concerns of Latino communities, including those facing language barriers or limited access to public institutions?
This position gives you three tools. That is, you draft laws, oversee agencies, and run an office that is accountable to the constituents. I will use all three.
Regarding the laws, the ICE, as it exists today, should be dissolved and rebuilt from the ground up, incorporating transparency, accountability, and due process, along with a pathway to citizenship based on meeting certain requirements. No family should lose access to a doctor, a classroom, or a salary because of the language they speak.
As for oversight, a member of Congress can demand answers from the Department of Homeland Security and inspect the facilities where people are being held. Very few do. You can be sure I will.
And right here in the office, I will hire Spanish-speaking case managers, post our forms and notices in Spanish, and hold outreach hours in communities from Siler City to Fayetteville, instead of waiting behind a desk for people to find us. No one should need a lawyer or perfect English to get an answer from their own government.
My grandfather came from Mexico to work. I know what this country looks like when it keeps its promise. I will judge myself on whether the people here can live without fear.
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