Democrat Paul Barringer unseats Republican Brad Knott in North Carolina's 13th District
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The gist
Democrat Paul Barringer won North Carolina's 13th Congressional District with 50.50% to Republican Brad Knott's 48.09%.
The flip was one of nine NC House seats Democrats won or led.
Background
Paul Barringer is an attorney, health care consultant and tree farmer from Lee County, North Carolina, making his first run for public office. He challenged Brad Knott, a Republican and former federal prosecutor seeking a second term in the 13th District. Knott first won the seat in November 2024 after Democrat Rep. Wiley Nickel stepped back following redistricting changes that gave the district a Republican lean. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee added the seat to its 'Districts in Play' list in early August, and both the Cook Political Report and Sabato's Crystal Ball had rated the race 'likely Republican' before the result.
How it unfolded
- Mar 3, 2026Barringer defeated Frank Pierce and Alexander Nicholi in the Democratic primary for North Carolina's 13th District with 59.1% of the vote.
- Oct 19, 2026North Carolina Health News published a candidate Q&A with Barringer, an attorney, health care consultant and tree farmer making his first run for public office.
- Oct 28, 2026NC Newsline reported Democrats saw an opening for Barringer against freshman Republican Brad Knott.
- Nov 3, 2026Barringer appeared on the general election ballot against incumbent Brad Knott (R) and Steven Swinton (L).
- Nov 4, 2026Barringer won with 50.50% to Knott's 48.09%, an unofficial vote difference of 7,652; results stay unofficial until the Nov. 13 canvass.
- Nov 5, 2026The AP reported Barringer's win, and The Well News published a profile of him as the NC-13 Democratic candidate.
Key terms
- redistricting
- The process of drawing electoral district boundaries, done after each ten-year census in the United States.
- Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
- The Democratic Hill committee that works to elect Democrats to the U.S. House of Representatives.
Source: Wikipedia
Who’s saying what
- Party
- Democrats saw an opening for Barringer against freshman Republican Knott, and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee added the seat to its 'Districts in Play' list in early August.
- Analysts
- The Cook Political Report and Sabato's Crystal Ball had rated the race 'likely Republican', with Cook shifting it from 'Solid Republican' in late October.
- Candidate
- Barringer campaigned on affordable health care, fiscal responsibility, constitutional principles and independent representation, and said Congress should reclaim oversight it had ceded.
Still unverified
All race results are unofficial until the Nov. 13 canvass is complete, according to the reporting.