North Carolina, State Senate, District 38

Note: North Carolina's state legislative district maps are the subject of ongoing legal actions. On June 5, 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed a federal district court decision finding that 28 state legislative districts had been subject to an illegal racial gerrymander. The district court then ordered state lawmakers to draft remedial maps for use in the 2018 election cycle. The legislature adopted new state House and Senate district maps on August 30, 2017. On October 26, 2017, the district court appointed a special master "to assist the Court in further evaluating and, if necessary, redrawing" the revised district maps. The special master, Nate Persily, issued final recommendations on December 1, 2017. On January 19, 2018, the district court issued an order adopting Persily's recommendations, which incorporated some changes to the maps drawn by the state legislature. However, on February 6, 2018, the Supreme Court of the United States issued a partial stay against the district court's order. On June 28, 2018, the high court partially affirmed the district court's decision but returned the case to the lower court for reconsideration regarding its original ruling on districts in Wake and Mecklenburg counties. As a result of these actions, several district numbers and boundaries changed. Consequently, the demographic information in this article might not apply to the newly drawn district boundaries. We will update this information as new developments occur. For more information on redistricting in North Carolina, see this article.

North Carolina State Senate District 38
Current incumbent	Mujtaba Mohammed
Population	183,694
Race	32.22% White, 53.73% Black, 0.53% Native American, 5.75% Asian/Pacific Islander, 5.00% Single Race Other, 2.77% Multi-Race
Ethnicity	90.06% Non Hispanic, 9.94% Hispanic
Voting age	74.0% age 18 and over

North Carolina's thirty-eighth state senate district is represented by Democratic Senator Mujtaba Mohammed.

As of the 2010 census, a total of 183,694 civilians reside within North Carolina's thirty-eighth state senate district. North Carolina state senators represent an average of 190,710 residents, as of the 2010 Census. After the 2000 Census, each member represented 160,986 residents.

About the office

Members of the North Carolina State Senate serve two-year terms and are not subject to term limits. North Carolina legislators assume office the first day of the new General Assembly in January.

Qualifications

Article 2, Section 6 of the North Carolina Constitution states: "Each Senator, at the time of his election, shall be not less than 25 years of age, shall be a qualified voter of the State, and shall have resided in the State as a citizen for two years and in the district for which he is chosen for one year immediately preceding his election."

Salaries

State legislators
Salary	Per diem
$13,951/year	$104/day; set by statute.

Vacancies

If there is a vacancy in the senate, the Governor is responsible for selecting a replacement. When making the appointment, the Governor must make the selection from a list of recommended candidates submitted by the political party committee that holds the vacant seat. The appointment must be made by the Governor within seven days of receiving the list of recommended candidates. The person selected to the seat serves for the remainder of the unfilled term.

Elections

2020

Elections for the office of North Carolina State Senate will take place in 2020. The general election will be held on November 3, 2020. A primary is scheduled for March 3, 2020. The filing deadline was December 20, 2019.

2018

General election

General election for North Carolina State Senate District 38

Mujtaba Mohammed (D) defeated Richard Rivette (R) in the general election for North Carolina State Senate District 38 on November 6, 2018.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Mujtaba Mohammed (D)	81.7	53,563
	Richard Rivette (R)	18.3	11,972

The results have been certified.

Total votes: 65,535

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for North Carolina State Senate District 38

Mujtaba Mohammed defeated incumbent Joel Ford, Roderick Davis, and Tim Wallis in the Democratic primary for North Carolina State Senate District 38 on May 8, 2018.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Mujtaba Mohammed (D)	51.9	6,899
	Joel Ford (D)	40.7	5,408
	Roderick Davis (D)	4.8	631
	Tim Wallis (D)	2.6	346

The results have been certified.

Total votes: 13,284

Republican primary election

Republican primary for North Carolina State Senate District 38

Richard Rivette advanced from the Republican primary for North Carolina State Senate District 38 on May 8, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Richard Rivette (R)

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

2016

Elections for the North Carolina State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election was held on March 15, 2016, and the general election will be held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was December 21, 2015.

Incumbent Joel Ford defeated Richard Rivette in the North Carolina State Senate District 38 general election.

North Carolina State Senate, District 38 General Election, 2016

Party	Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Joel Ford Incumbent	79.06%	67,059
	Republican	Richard Rivette	20.94%	17,764
Total Votes			84,823
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections

Incumbent Joel Ford defeated Roderick Davis in the North Carolina State Senate District 38 Democratic primary.

North Carolina State Senate, District 38 Democratic Primary, 2016

Party	Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Joel Ford Incumbent	52.10%	11,619
	Democratic	Roderick Davis	47.90%	10,682
Total Votes			22,301

Richard Rivette ran unopposed in the North Carolina State Senate District 38 Republican primary.

North Carolina State Senate, District 38 Republican Primary, 2016

Party	Candidate
	Republican	Richard Rivette (unopposed)

2014

Elections for the North Carolina State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on May 6, 2014. The general election took place on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was February 28, 2014. Incumbent Joel Ford was unopposed in the Democratic primary, while Richard Rivette was unopposed in the Republican primary. Ford defeated Rivette in the general election.

North Carolina State Senate, District 38 General Election, 2014

Party	Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Joel Ford Incumbent	79.7%	35,366
	Republican	Richard Rivette	20.3%	9,003
Total Votes			44,369

2012

Elections for the office of North Carolina State Senate consisted of a primary election on May 8, 2012, and a general election on November 6, 2012. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was February 29, 2012. Joel Ford (D) defeated Richard Rivette (R) in the general election and Jamison Lawson in the Democratic primary. Rivette defeated James Soder in the Republican primary.

North Carolina State Senate, District 38, General Election, 2012

Party	Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Joel Ford	80.2%	65,715
	Republican	Richard Rivette	19.8%	16,214
Total Votes			81,929

North Carolina State Senate District 38 Democratic Primary, 2012

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Joel Ford	52.2%	7,877
Charlie Dannelly (dropped out but on ballot)	30.3%	4,569
Jamison Lawson	17.6%	2,658
Total Votes		15,104

Campaign contributions

From 2002 to 2016, candidates for North Carolina State Senate District 38 raised a total of $479,519. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $18,443 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.

Campaign contributions, North Carolina State Senate District 38

Year	Amount	Candidates	Average
2016	$81,632	3	$27,211
2014	$100,672	2	$50,336
2012	$98,448	5	$19,690
2010	$31,218	2	$15,609
2008	$41,586	3	$13,862
2006	$40,649	1	$40,649
2004	$32,657	2	$16,329
2002	$12,150	1	$12,150
2000	$40,507	7	$5,787
Total	$479,519	26	$18,443