FAYETTEVILLE, North Carolina
Former North Carolina state senator Ben Clark has added his name to the list of candidates for lieutenant governor in 2024.
The Democrat, who served five terms in the General Assembly last year, officially entered the race last week. He said he would be a lieutenant governor “who will represent everyone” if elected.
Current Republican Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson is running for governor next year.
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Clark represented Hoke and Cumberland counties in the Senate. He ran for Congress in 2022 and lost to GOP Rep. Richard Hudson in the 9th District.
Clark, a former Air Force officer who is now a military information technology contractor at Fort Bragg, lamented the overall country and state tenor.
“This ‘us versus them’ approach by government is divisive and threatens our peace and prosperity,” Clark told The Fayetteville Observer in a recent interview.
Clark joins State Sen. Rachel Hunt, of Charlotte, and other candidates for the Democratic nomination. Republican hopefuls include state Rep. Jeffrey Elmore of Wilkes County and Hal Weatherman, a former aide to former Lt. Gov. Dan Forest. The primaries will take place in March.
Chris Rey, a former Spring Lake mayor who also announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination months ago, told the newspaper he was no longer running.
The lieutenant governor, who appears separately from the governor on the ballot, presides over debate in the state Senate, voting only in the event of a tie. The lieutenant governor sits on a few boards, including the State Board of Education and the State Board of Community Colleges.
