Latino representation in North Carolina will expand into new legislative spaces following the November 3, 2026 elections. According to provisional results, Richard Ojeda will become the first Latino elected to the federal Congress from the state, and Jessica (Jess) Rivera will be the first Latina to hold a seat in the state Senate.
Both will join Jordan López, who won reelection unopposed to the North Carolina House of Representatives. Thus, there will be a Latino legislator in each of three key spaces: the U.S. House of Representatives, the state Senate, and the state House of Representatives.
In total, eleven of the 22 Latino candidates who ran in the state won their races, while the other eleven were not elected, according to results from the State Board of Elections (NCSBE). The candidacies covered federal, state, judicial, and local offices. Four candidates won unopposed.
One hundred percent of precincts in these races have now reported results. However, the figures are still unofficial and may change before certification.
Candidates Who Won According to Unofficial Provisional Results
Richard N. Ojeda II: U.S. House of Representatives, District 9
Democrat Richard N. Ojeda II defeated Republican Richard Hudson in the race for the 9th District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.
His victory will make him the first Latino elected to the U.S. Congress from North Carolina. Ojeda, grandson of a Mexican immigrant, will for the first time bring Latino representation from the state to the federal House.
He obtained 138,707 votes, 51.11%, compared to Hudson’s 132,692, 48.89%. The margin was 6,015 votes.
Jordan López: North Carolina House of Representatives, District 112
Democrat Jordan López won unopposed in the race for the 112th District seat in the state House of Representatives.
He received 26,324 votes, 100% of the votes recorded for that office.
Jessica (Jess) Rivera: North Carolina Senate, District 4
Democrat Jessica (Jess) Rivera defeated Republican Buck Newton in the race for the 4th District seat in the state Senate.
Rivera, of Mexican and Irish descent, will be the first Latina to hold a seat in the North Carolina Senate, according to the organization Run for Something, which backed her candidacy. Her arrival will increase Latino presence in the General Assembly, where Jordan López will continue in the House of Representatives.
Rivera received 37,539 votes, 51.07%, compared to Newton’s 35,962, 48.93%. The margin was 1,577 votes.
Lou Olivera: Superior Court, District 14C, Seat 1
Democrat Lou Olivera won unopposed for judge of the North Carolina Superior Court for District 14C, Seat 1, in Cumberland County.
He received 36,408 votes, 100% of the votes recorded for that position.
Amalia Mercedes Restucha: District Court, District 10D, Seat 2
Democrat Amalia Mercedes Restucha defeated Republican J. Brian Ratledge in the race for judge of the North Carolina District Court for District 10D, Seat 2, in Wake.
Restucha received 100,344 votes, 64.71%, compared to Ratledge’s 54,722, 35.29%.
Franklin Gómez-Flores: Chatham County Board of Commissioners, District 5
Democrat Franklin Gómez-Flores won the race for District 5 of the Chatham County Board of Commissioners.
He secured 24,299 votes, 67.38%, compared to Republican Steve Ganley’s 11,764, 32.62%.
Susan Rodríguez-McDowell: Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners, District 6
Democrat Susan Rodríguez-McDowell won unopposed for District 6 on the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners.
She received 60,462 votes, 100% of the votes recorded for that office.
Christina Jones: Raleigh City Council, District E
Christina Jones, affiliated with the Democratic Party, won the election for District E of the Raleigh City Council. The electoral board did not display party labels for this race.
She obtained 27,461 votes, 70.03%, compared to Marc Scruggs’ 11,633, 29.66%. Another 121 votes, 0.31%, were write-ins.
Jasmine Zavala: Wake County Board of Education, District 1
Jasmine Zavala won the race for District 1 on the Wake County Board of Education. The board did not identify candidates by party.
She received 26,096 votes, 48.69%. Bonnie Greaves received 19,148, 35.73%, Sebrina Pierce 7,942, 14.82%. Another 405 votes, 0.76%, were write-ins.
Robbie Gonzalez: Newton-Conover Board of Education, Conover District
Republican Robbie Gonzalez won unopposed for the Conover District seat on the Newton-Conover school system’s Board of Education, in Catawba County.
He received 2,488 votes, 100% of the votes recorded for that office.
Víctor Varela: Ronda Board of Commissioners
Víctor Varela, affiliated as a Democrat, placed among the top three in the race for seats on the Ronda Board of Commissioners, in Wilkes County. The electoral board did not display party labels for this race.
He obtained 59 votes, 23.98%, ahead of Kevin Reece, with 56 and 22.76%, and Chris Nelson, with 51 and 20.73%.
There were also 80 write-in votes, 32.52%. Although their distribution is not yet known, at most only one person could surpass Varela, so he will not be displaced from the top three.
Candidates Who Lost According to Unofficial Provisional Results
Jocelyn Torres: North Carolina House of Representatives, District 67
Democrat Jocelyn Torres lost to Republican Cody Huneycutt in the race for the 67th District seat in the state House of Representatives.
Torres received 10,631 votes, 32.11%, compared to Huneycutt’s 22,475, 67.89%.
Brian Echevarria: North Carolina House of Representatives, District 82
Republican Brian Echevarria lost to Democrat Chris Bishopp in the race for the 82nd District seat in the state House of Representatives, in Cabarrus County.
He received 16,481 votes, 44.02%, compared to Bishopp’s 20,956, 55.98%.
Jorge Enrique Cordova: North Carolina House of Representatives, District 39
Republican Jorge Enrique Cordova, identified on the ballot as Jorge Cordova, lost to Democrat James A. Roberson in the election for the 39th District seat in the state House of Representatives.
Cordova received 10,332 votes, 25.08%. Roberson got 29,894, 72.58%, while Libertarian Wayne Cockrell had 962, 2.34%.
Laura Natividad Pichardo: North Carolina Senate, District 23
Republican Laura Natividad Pichardo, identified on the ballot as Laura Pichardo, lost to Democrat Jonah Garson in the race for the 23rd District seat in the state Senate.
Pichardo received 26,191 votes, 27.42%, compared to Garson’s 69,311, 72.58%.
Jessica María Moreno: Gaston County Board of Commissioners, Gastonia Seat
Democrat Jessica María Moreno lost to Republican Tom Keigher in the race for the Gastonia seat on the Gaston County Board of Commissioners.
Moreno received 39,576 votes, 48.39%, compared to Keigher’s 42,202, 51.61%. The margin was 2,626 votes.
Maritza Gómez: Guilford County Board of Education, District 6
Republican Maritza Gómez lost to Democrat Khem D. Irby in the race for District 6 on the Guilford County Board of Education.
Gómez received 10,045 votes, 34.80%, compared to Irby’s 18,817, 65.20%.
Michael Quiñones: Forsyth County Board of Education, At-large Seats
Republican Michael Quiñones finished fourth in the race for three at-large seats on the Forsyth County Board of Education, falling short of a seat.
He received 52,535 votes, 14.13% of the selections recorded. The top three were Democrats Valerie Brockenbrough, with 90,930 votes and 24.46%; Elisabeth Motsinger, with 89,764 and 24.14%; and Ronda Mays, with 89,408 and 24.05%.
In this race, each voter could vote for up to three candidates. The percentages reflect the share of selections received by each candidacy over the total recorded, not the percentage of voters who supported each.
Sebastian Jimenez-Barreras: Rural Hall Mayor
Sebastian Jimenez-Barreras, a nonpartisan candidate, finished third in the election for mayor of Rural Hall, in Forsyth County.
He received 137 votes, 12.79%. Susan Hawks Gordon, also nonpartisan, won with 553 votes, 51.63%, followed by Republican Terry M. Bennett, with 373 and 34.83%.
Jesús A. Almaraz: Hookerton Town Commissioner
Jesús A. Almaraz, affiliated as a Republican, placed fourth in the race for two town commissioner seats in Hookerton, in Greene County. The electoral board did not display party labels for this race.
He received 40 votes, 16.74% of the selections recorded. The top two candidates were Doris Jones, with 72 votes and 30.13%, and Catherine Carraway, with 69 and 28.87%. Benny Brigman placed third, with 57 votes and 23.85%.
María Salazar: Wilson County Board of Education, District 7
María Salazar placed second in the race for District 7 on the Wilson County Board of Education. The board did not display party labels for this race.
She obtained 1,040 votes, 29.08%, behind F. T. Franks, Jr., who won with 1,331, 37.22%. Jennifer Bennington received 1,005 votes, 28.10%, and another 200, 5.59%, were write-ins.
Hilda de Cortez: Asheboro Board of Education
Hilda de Cortez, who appeared on the ballot as Hilda DeCortez and ran without party affiliation, finished third in the race for two seats on the Asheboro school system Board of Education, in Randolph County.
She received 3,260 votes, 23.46% of the selections recorded. The two seats went to Republicans Mike Brown, with 3,795 votes and 27.31%, and Brad Thomas, with 3,770 and 27.13%.
>> Expand the information by visiting the NCSBE website
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