First district congressional race was North Carolina’s most expensive in 2024 cycle

Candidates in the recently concluded election for North Carolina’s first U.S. House district raised and spent millions of dollars in what turned out to be the state’s most expensive congressional race this cycle.

It was the Tar Heel state’s only competitive U.S. House contest. A round of gerrymandered redistricting at the state legislature shifted the congressional delegation from a 7-7 divide that featured several competitive races in 2022, to a 10-4 Republican majority in which winners of the other 13 races were all foreordained in 2024.

Post-election campaign finance reports were due to the Federal Election Commission on Thursday. The period spans from Oct. 17 to Nov. 25.

As of 1:30 p.m. Friday, none of North Carolina’s four Democratic representatives had filed their paperwork since the previous deadline in October, so the numbers below likely represent understatements for Reps. Alma Adams, Don Davis, Valerie Foushee, and Deborah Ross.

Republican challenger Laurie Buckhout, an Army veteran, mounted a bid to unseat Democratic incumbent Rep. Don Davis in the first district contest.

Buckhout managed to attract contributions totaling about $4.8 million over the course of her campaign. She spent an almost equal amount of about $4.69 million, more than any other candidate in North Carolina.

Even without his report for the final period, Davis outraised Buckhout by taking in about $5.6 million through the pre-election filing deadline — the most out of all North Carolina congressional candidates. At about $3.8 million, his preliminary expenditure numbers ranked third in the state.

Despite having an uncompetitive race, Republican Rep. Richard Hudson in the ninth congressional district disbursed the second most in the state, spending about $4.66 million throughout his campaign. Hudson also raised the most aside from the District 1 candidates at about $3.9 million.

All but two of the state’s Republican congressional members or member-elects moved around more than $1 million during their candidacies — although incoming Republican representatives did not necessarily face competitive elections.

The exceptions to this $1 million threshold are Rep.-elects Addison McDowell of District 6 and Mark Harris of District 8.

Both had similar fundraising amounts: McDowell received about $850,000 and spent about $830,000, while Harris raised about $830,000 and disbursed just over $700,000.

Democratic incumbent Reps. Valerie Foushee of District 4 and Alma Adams of District 12 also did not meet the $1 million bar, moving around the least money out of the state’s congressional delegation.

Foushee fundraised about $640,000 and spent about $690,000 up until the pre-election filing deadline. Adams received about $660,000 and spent the least out of elected members at about $580,000.

Click here to see the final vote totals in each of the state's 14 congressional races.