{"id":9272,"date":"2026-03-25T01:54:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T01:54:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/9272\/"},"modified":"2026-03-25T01:54:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T01:54:10","slug":"phil-berger-concedes-north-carolina-legislative-primary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/9272\/","title":{"rendered":"Phil Berger concedes North Carolina legislative primary"},"content":{"rendered":"

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) \u2014 North Carolina government\u2019s most influential politician, Republican state Senate leader Phil Berger<\/a>, conceded the primary race for his seat to Sam Page<\/a> on Tuesday, shaking the power structure in the ninth-largest state and likely soon ending Berger\u2019s preeminence as the state\u2019s top conservative architect.<\/p>\n

Berger trailed Page, the Rockingham County sheriff, in their March 3 primary by only 23 votes. He has been Senate leader since 2011 when Republicans took full control over the General Assembly<\/a> for the first time in 140 years. President Donald Trump had endorsed Berger for reelection, praising him for his policy accomplishments. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Sam<\/p>\n

Sam Page, candidate for North Carolina State Senate, campaigns at the Rockingham County Agriculture Center in Reidsville, N.C., on Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (Woody Marshall\/News & Record via AP)<\/p>\n

Sam Page, candidate for North Carolina State Senate, campaigns at the Rockingham County Agriculture Center in Reidsville, N.C., on Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (Woody Marshall\/News & Record via AP)<\/p>\n

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Trump\u2019s endorsement came several weeks after the legislature redrew the state\u2019s U.S. House district<\/a> map in an attempt to flip a Democratic seat as part of the president\u2019s redistricting campaign<\/a> to retain GOP control of the U.S. House in this year\u2019s midterm elections.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile this was a close race, the voters have spoken, and I congratulate Sheriff Page on his victory,\u201d Berger said in a news release. \u201cOver the past 15 years, Republicans in the General Assembly have fundamentally redefined our state\u2019s outlook and reputation. It has been an honor.\u201d <\/p>\n

A razor-thin outcome after millions spent in race<\/p>\n

Unofficial results on primary election night showed Page leading Berger by just two votes out of more than 26,000 counted in the 26th Senate District that includes part of Greensboro and neighboring areas. <\/p>\n

Page\u2019s lead expanded as elections boards in the two counties within the district reviewed provisional, absentee and other ballots. Later recounts were conducted and Berger\u2019s campaign filed formal protests. But Berger gave up after a hand recount of a small portion of the ballots Tuesday morning showed no change in Page\u2019s razor-thin lead.<\/p>\n

Page will now advance to the November general election in the GOP-leaning district against Democrat Steve Luking, whom Berger defeated in 2024. Page said Berger called him Tuesday to concede.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thank him for wishing me the best moving forward,\u201d Page said in a statement. \u201cNow it\u2019s time for our community to come together and focus on winning in November.\u201d<\/p>\n

Page\u2019s campaign was outspent by Berger\u2019s campaign by more than 40-to-1 through mid-February, finance reports show. That doesn\u2019t include several million dollars that a pro-Berger independent expenditure group spent on mailers and advertising. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Sam<\/p>\n

Sam Page, candidate for North Carolina State Senate, campaigns at the Rockingham County Agriculture Center in Reidsville, N.C., on Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (Woody Marshall\/News & Record via AP)<\/p>\n

Sam Page, candidate for North Carolina State Senate, campaigns at the Rockingham County Agriculture Center in Reidsville, N.C., on Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (Woody Marshall\/News & Record via AP)<\/p>\n

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Berger can remain a senator and Senate leader through year\u2019s end \u2014 things he sounds like he plans to do based on Tuesday\u2019s concession and previous suggestions. Senators would pick a new chamber leader in early 2027. <\/p>\n

Berger, a 73-year-old attorney, has been a force in North Carolina government as the General Assembly implemented a rightward agenda despite opposition from a string of mostly Democrat governors, whose inherent powers are relatively weak.<\/p>\n

Possible casino stirred opposition back home<\/p>\n

Page, who was first elected sheriff in 1998, tapped into local voter discontent with a narrative that Berger was more interested in the state rather than in looking out for constituents. Berger\u2019s unsuccessful efforts in 2023 to pass a law that could have brought a casino<\/a> to Rockingham County also angered social conservatives and gave Page an opening. <\/p>\n

While endorsing Berger in December, Trump praised Page and said he wanted the sheriff to instead \u201ccome work for us in Washington, D.C.\u201d rather than run against Berger. Page \u2014 who had supported Trump\u2019s immigration enforcement policies over the years \u2014 declined. <\/p>\n

Berger figures most everywhere in conservative shift<\/p>\n

Berger first joined the Senate in 2001 and was minority leader before a GOP sweep in the 2010 elections. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Phil<\/p>\n

Phil Berger, candidate for North Carolina State Senate, campaigns at Douglass Elementary in Eden, N.C., on Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (Woody Marshall\/News & Record via AP)<\/p>\n

Phil Berger, candidate for North Carolina State Senate, campaigns at Douglass Elementary in Eden, N.C., on Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (Woody Marshall\/News & Record via AP)<\/p>\n

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He figured into every conservative policy prescription since, including income tax reductions, private-school vouchers for any family, restrictions on abortion and looser regulations on gun access. Berger\u2019s allies say he\u2019s chartered fueled economic success in the state of 11 million.<\/p>\n

Current GOP House Speaker Destin Hall, who has grappled with the Senate recently over an unresolved budget, praised Berger late Tuesday as \u201ca true titan of conservative leadership in North Carolina.\u201d<\/p>\n

With support from the House speaker, Berger also enacted efforts to shift appointment powers<\/a> away from Democratic Gov. Josh Stein and former Gov. Roy Cooper toward lawmakers and other officials. Despite clashing with Cooper, Berger and then-Speaker Tim Moore ultimately reached a deal with him to expand Medicaid<\/a> to hundreds of thousands of adults. <\/p>\n

Given Berger\u2019s longevity and \u201chis ability and willingness to quietly but effectively wield power and you are left with the most powerful politician in North Carolina,\u201d Western Carolina University political science professor Chris Cooper wrote Tuesday in an email.<\/p>\n

Berger\u2019s critics said his agenda benefited the rich, kept down salary increases for state employees and teachers and failed to adequately fund public schools while funneling money to private schools. Democrats also have accused legislative Republicans of eroding rights for women and transgender people. <\/p>\n

Senate Minority Leader Sydney Batch said in a news release that Berger \u201chas put power, politics, and special interests ahead of the people he was elected to serve.\u201d <\/p>\n

The General Assembly\u2019s chief work session for 2026 begins in April, when senators will begin jockeying in earnest to succeed Berger as Senate leader should the GOP maintain a majority in the fall. The chamber\u2019s 50 members pick a leader every two years. <\/p>\n

__<\/p>\n

This story has been updated to correct that Berger\u2019s campaign outspent Page\u2019s campaign by more than 40-to-1 through mid-February, not more than 50-to-1.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) \u2014 North Carolina government\u2019s most influential politician, Republican state Senate leader Phil Berger, conceded the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":9273,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[362,6805,840,2488,38,286,50,8,6801,762,9,735,1264,67,6799,6800,6802,6804,6803,7,363,54,365,477],"class_list":{"0":"post-9272","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-top-stories","8":"tag-2026-elections","9":"tag-chris-cooper","10":"tag-conservatism","11":"tag-domestic-news","12":"tag-donald-trump","13":"tag-elections","14":"tag-general-news","15":"tag-headlines","16":"tag-josh-stein","17":"tag-nc-state-wire","18":"tag-news","19":"tag-north-carolina","20":"tag-phil-berger","21":"tag-politics","22":"tag-roy-cooper","23":"tag-senate-elections","24":"tag-steve-luking","25":"tag-sydney-batch","26":"tag-tim-moore","27":"tag-top-stories","28":"tag-u-s-democratic-party","29":"tag-u-s-news","30":"tag-u-s-republican-party","31":"tag-united-states-house-of-representatives"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@news\/116287324971320490","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9272","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9272"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9272\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9273"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9272"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9272"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9272"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}