By Miles Layton
It’s official — Governor Josh Stein has appointed Jerry Tillett to the NC Senate, District 1.
Love how this phrase rolls off the tongue — Stein signed the line to make this appointment official today, Thursday, Sept. 3.
Tillett will represent Senate District 1, which includes Bertie, Camden, Currituck, Dare, Gates, Hertford, Northampton, Pasquotank, Perquimans and Tyrrell counties.
Congratulations, Senator Tillett.
Flashback — Republican representatives from across the district gathered Saturday morning at the Currituck County Courthouse and selected him by acclamation to succeed Bobby Hanig, a Currituck County Republican who recently stepped down from representing the same 10-county district. Tillett, a retired Dare County Superior Court judge, signed the paperwork formally accepting the committee’s recommendation.
Under North Carolina law, Gov. Josh Stein was required to appoint the committee’s pick within seven days of receiving the recommendation; had he failed to act in that window, the appointment would have been presumed made anyway, with the Senate directed to seat Tillett regardless. Stein made it official Thursday, appointing Tillett to the seat.
The appointment is limited to finishing out the remainder of Hanig’s term, which had been scheduled to run through Jan. 1, 2027. A full term will be decided by voters in the Nov. 3 general election, when Tillett is slated to face Democrat Melissa Zehner.
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