In NC's 1st Congressional District, 5 Republicans are vying to face U.S. Rep. Don Davis

The new sprawling 1st District stretches from a small piece of Granville County in the west to Dare County in the east, down to Craven and Carteret counties while also including a small piece of Onslow County around Swansboro. It encompasses 23 entire counties and parts of two more.

The Republican candidates

Asa Buck: The six-term Carteret County sheriff is leaving that office to seek a seat in Congress. Buck has been a long-time supporter of Trump’s, giving an introductory speech during a September 2016 rally in Greenville.

Laurie Buckhout: The GOP’s 2024 nominee is seeking the seat once again. After losing narrowly, Buckhout joined the Trump Administration, serving as the Department of Defense’s acting assistant secretary of cybersecurity from March to September 2025. Buckhout is a retired U.S. Army Colonel and combat veteran whose awards include the Distinguished Service Medal and Bronze Star, among several others. After leaving the Army, Buckhout founded and sold a consulting firm focused on electronic warfare and cyberspace. Buckhout lives in Edenton.

Bobby Hanig: Since 2018, the Currituck County Republican has served in North Carolina’s General Assembly. He started with two terms in the state’s House of Representatives before moving over to the Senate in 2022. Last year, Hanig’s profile received a boost when he publicly split with Senate Republican leader Phil Berger to successfully oppose legislation that would have banned in-shore shrimp trawling in North Carolina’ssounds. Hanig is also a U.S. Army veteran.

Eric Rouse: The four-term Lenoir County commissioner is seeking a promotion. Rouse announced his campaign against Davis before the maps were redrawn and decided to stay in the race, even though his Kinston home is technically in the 3rd Congressional District. In addition to his political work, Rouse owns several small businesses, including a modular construction company, a concrete company and a directional drilling company. Rouse also ran for Congress in 2019, seeking the Republican nomination in the state’s 3rd Congressional District.

Ashley-Nicole Russell: A political newcomer, Russell is a family attorney who lives in Carteret County with offices throughout central and eastern North Carolina. Russell is a mother of four and said during a recent debate that the assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk galvanized her to seek a seat in Congress.

What does polling say?

A poll released just before early voting began showed Buck and Buckhout gaining the most traction.

The Emerson College Polling effort asked 500 likely voters in the GOP primary which candidate they preferred. Of those, 26% said Buckhout, 22% Buck, 11% Hanig, 5% Rouse and 1% Russell.

The largest percentage went to undecided voters, with 36% saying they had not yet made up their minds.

The poll’s margin of error is 4.3%

In one wrinkle, the poll asked potential voters if they support “Robert Hanig,” a politician who is better known as and will appear on ballots as “Bobby Hanig.”

Under North Carolina election law, the top vote-getter must receive at least 30% of ballots. If they don’t, the second-place candidate can request a runoff election, a second primary that would be held on May 12.

In 2024, there was a second primary in the GOP’s lieutenant governor primary, state auditor primary and nomination for the 13^th Congressional District, although one of the candidates in the Congressional race dropped out before election day.

Key policy stances

There is virtually no difference between the five candidates on policy.

“In some ways, it’s an election about name recognition and resumes much more so than it is about public policy,” said Chris Cooper, the director of the Haire Institute for Public Policy at Western Carolina University.

For instance, during a recent WNCT-TV debate the candidates were asked which federal department they would downsize or eliminate.

All five quickly settled on the U.S. Department of Education, which Trump has pledged to dismantle.

Per the Emerson poll, issues of affordability took all three of the top spots when likely voters were asked what they consider the top issue facing their community. About 16% said the cost of living, 13.4% said the economy and 10% said affordable housing.

On immigration, every candidate believes that strict enforcement measures are necessary and said they support efforts like the recent operation in Minneapolis.

On government spending, all five support efforts to reduce the size and spending of federal agencies like those undertaken last year by Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency initiative. Each candidate said during the WNCT debate that cutting spending would, in turn, help put money back into people’s pockets in the district.

The candidates also support finding a way to continue social security, particularly in a rural district where many counties are seeing quickly aging populations.

Key factors

Donald Trump: Trump visited the newly redrawn district in December, just before the holiday season. But he left without offering an endorsement.

Still, every candidate in the race is touting how closely they intend to hew to Trump’s America First agenda in Congress. In the Emerson poll, 88.5% of those asked said they approve of the job Trump is doing, with 7.9% saying they disapprove.

Having served in Trump’s administration and already run for Congress, Buckhout would seem at first glance to be the candidate on the ticket most likely to have Trump’s attention. In recent days, Buck has been running commercials clarifying that Trump has not endorsed in the 2026 race.

“At the end of the day, he has not endorsed and he has not given Republican voters a clear sign of who they should vote for. And I’m as curious as anybody to see who they ultimately choose,” Cooper said.

Widening their base: With four of the five candidates in the race having either served in elected office or sought it before, there are clear parts of the district where they might expect to see greater support.

Hanig, for example, likely has an advantage in the northeastern corner and in some coastal areas, particularly after “Shrimpgate.” Buck is a well-known name around the Crystal Coast. And Rouse has been on a Congressional ballot before.

Cooper said it is perhaps Buckhout who has the greatest advantage here, one afforded by her recent Congressional run.

“Yes it’s a little bit of a different district, but people are aware of her name. She ran for office before. She raised a whole lot of money. She ran a whole lot of ads in the exact media markets that she’s going to be running in, even if the district lines are different,” Cooper said.