Republican North Carolina state Sen. Bobby Hanig announces bid to unseat Democrat Don Davis in 2026

POWELLS POINT, N.C. (AP) — A coastal North Carolina legislator announced his bid on Wednesday for a U.S. House seat next year, looking to unseat Democratic incumbent Don Davis in what is now the state’s currently only swing congressional district.

State Sen. Bobby Hanig of Currituck County said he would seek the Republican nomination for the sprawling 1st Congressional District, which covers 22 counties from the northern Outer Banks to the Raleigh metro area’s outskirts.

Davis and Rocky Mount Mayor Sandy Roberson, also a Republican, have already filed federal candidate paperwork for the 1st District seat in 2026. The official state election filing period is in December, with primaries set for early March.

Republicans currently hold 10 of North Carolina’s 14 U.S. House seats, with the 1st District seat the only other one for which the GOP has been competitive. The November 2026 outcome will be watched closely given the Republicans’ narrow U.S. House majority and efforts in other states to redraw congressional maps to favor one major party or the other.

Hanig, who was initially elected to the state House in 2018 before moving to the Senate in 2022, highlighted his support for President Donald Trump’s policies and his legislative record with his entry.

“I’m a proven leader who has always been a fierce advocate for my constituents and our shared values and beliefs,” Hanig said in a news release. “I will continue that fight when I get to Washington.”

Davis, himself a former state senator, won the 1st District seat in 2022 by defeating Republican Sandy Smith, and earned a second term last fall over Republican Laurie Buckhout by less than 2 percentage points.

Roberson, who lost the GOP nomination to Smith in 2022, reported to the Federal Election Commission raising nearly $2.3 million for his campaign committee in the second quarter, of which $2 million came from his personal funds.

Hanig, a business owner and former Currituck County commissioner chairman, is perhaps best known at the Legislative Building for wearing colorful and striking suit jackets.

Hanig clashed with state Senate GOP leaders this year while opposing their efforts to ban inshore and coastal shoreline shrimp trawling. The legislation petered out in the House after shrimp industry members and their allies rallied in Raleigh against it.