Jeff Jackson wins Democratic nomination for AG, setting up battle with Republican Dan Bishop

North Carolina U.S. Rep. Jeff Jackson, D-Charlotte, who chose not to seek reelection to Congress after being drawn out of his district, won the Democratic primary for state attorney general.

With 80% of precincts reporting, Jackson had 100,000 more votes than the second place finisher, Durham District Attorney Satana Deberry.

Jackson’s win over Deberry and retired Marine Tim Dunn sets up an expensive general election showdown with Republican U.S. Rep Dan Bishop, who is also leaving congress in pursuit of the AG seat. Bishop is running opposed and therefore wasn’t on primary ballots.

Jackson saw his congressional district turned into a heavily Republican district under new maps approved in October by the Republican-led state legislature — a move that has fueled his campaign pitch.

Jackson has said he wants to fight what he described as the kind of “political corruption” that led to maps that are expected to yield a 14-member North Carolina congressional delegation that includes at least 10 Republicans. Republicans, who control the state legislature and the district-drawing process, represent the third-biggest voting bloc in the state.

The AG's office is wide open next year because current Attorney General Josh Stein, a Democrat, chose to run for governor seeking to replace Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who is term-limited and can't run for a third term as governor.

Jackson flirted with a run for U.S. Senate in 2022 before bowing out to let Democrats coalesce around eventual nominee Cheri Beasley. In just a year in Congress he's developed a national profile due to his prolific social media presence.

Bishop’s has strong name recognition, having been endorsed by former President Donald Trump. He also has ties to major conservative donors.

Bishop, who is a lawyer, former county commissioner and former state legislator, said he missed practicing law more regularly, and sees the post as a way to counter an encroaching federal government and to buttress law enforcement during a time of increasing violence.

In an interview with WBT in August, Bishop cited the close 2020 race as evidence that the attorney general seat is within grasp of Republicans. Stein edged out Republican Jim O’Neill by less than 1 percentage point despite spending significantly more on the race than O’Neill, Bishop said. Bishop’s campaign will be much more competitive financially, he has said.

The 2024 race could be the most expensive race for state AG ever. In their 2022 congressional runs Jackson raised $5.7 million and Bishop raised $1.9 million — despite neither running statewide, nor facing a true threat in their elections.

Jackson’s 2022 haul alone is equal to what Stein and his Republican opponent, Buck Newton, combined to raise in 2016, the last time there was a race for attorney general with no incumbent.

Bishop and Jackson are used to butting heads. They previously served together in the state Senate, where Bishop was the lead sponsor of a 2016 law often called HB 2 that limited transgender rights and led companies, sports tournaments and musical acts to boycott North Carolina until it was partially repealed the next year. Jackson was a frequent critic of that law.

They've both now gone to Washington to represent North Carolina and built national followings in the process; Bishop frequently appears on conservative media as a member of the far-right Freedom Caucus that has recently been the subject of much attention within the U.S. House of Representatives during fights over government shutdowns attempts, House speaker drama and more.

Attorneys general historically have focused on handling appeals in criminal cases or representing state agencies in court. Many also undertake a wide range of civil actions, ranging from consumer protection lawsuits to going after scammers and price-gougers.

Stein, for instance, has won more than $1 billion for North Carolina during his two terms as attorney general by suing numerous opioid companies and distributors, the e-cigarette maker Juul and others.

But the office — in North Carolina and nationwide — has become more political in recent years.

Stein is one of many attorneys general who sued former Republican President Donald Trump's administration over various policies; Republican attorneys general in other states have likewise launched multiple lawsuits against Democratic President Joe Biden's administration.

And Republican lawmakers heavily criticized Stein for refusing to defend a controversial new abortion law in court this year, as they also criticized Cooper when he was attorney general in 2016 and refused to defend HB2. In both cases Stein and Cooper said they wouldn't defend laws they believed to be unconstitutional.