In the North Carolina auditor’s race, a Republican and a Libertarian are challenging a Democratic incumbent who was appointed to the position less than a year ago.

The current auditor, Jessica Holmes, was elected to replace longtime auditor Beth Wood in December after Wood decided to step down.

Wood, a Democrat who served as auditor for 14 years from 2009 to 2023, resigned after pleading guilty to misdemeanor charges for misusing her state-owned vehicle.

She earlier pleaded guilty to hit-and-run charges stemming from an accident involving her state vehicle in December 2022.

Gov. Roy Cooper appointed Holmes, an attorney and former chairman of the Wake County Board of Commissioners, to serve out the remainder of Wood’s term, and Holmes announced at the time that he intended to run for the full four-year term. year.

Two contenders, Republican Dave Boliek and Libertarian Bob Drach, are running against Holmes for the job.

Boliek, an attorney and businessman, currently serves on the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees. He previously chaired the board of directors. Drach is an accountant.

Candidates for the position of CN auditor

The News & Observer sent out candidate questionnaires to Holmes, Boliek and Drach as part of the 2024 Voter Guide.

All three candidates submitted responses and answered questions about what their top priority as auditor would be and in what areas, if any, they thought state government was wasting taxpayer money.

They also told us how they will prioritize state programs and agencies that should be audited and ensure that politically connected people and companies don’t unfairly benefit from state spending and contracts. Finally, they talked to us about issues where they disagree with their parties.

Jessica Holmesdemocratic

Dave Boliekrepublican

Bob Drachlibertarian

You can read more responses at newsobserver.com/voterguide.