Why this, Why me, Why now?

Our rights are under attack, and we deserve judges who will defend them. Our current court have failed: they have allowed extreme partisan gerrymandering, blocked nearly $1 billion from our public schools, and sought to discard thousands of lawful votes.

I am part of a small group of North Carolina attorneys fighting to protect our rights. I have fought gerrymandering, stood up for our public schools, and defended our votes.

We have won on the law, but lost on the politics. Democrats have lost every Court of Appeals campaign since 2018, and if we lose this time, there will not be a single Democrat left on our court. The only way to secure our rights is to support a new generation of judicial candidates who have the right experience to meet this moment. That’s why I’m running, and I hope to have your support.

Meet James

Originally from Charlotte, James met his wife, Anna, at UNC Asheville. Before becoming an attorney, James interned on President Barack Obama’s reelection campaign, worked in the NC General Assembly, and managed winning political campaigns.

James earned a scholarship to UNC School of Law and graduated with honors. He began his legal career in Winston-Salem clerking and being mentored by U.S. District Court Judge Loretta Biggs, the first African American woman appointed to the federal bench in North Carolina.

James served as an appellate attorney in the NC Department of Justice, where he litigated some of the most consequential cases to impact North Carolina. He fought gerrymandering in the U.S. Supreme Court, fought for our public schools, and held domestic abusers accountable.

James is now in private practice at Brooks Pierce LLP in Raleigh. Earlier this year, he was part of the legal team that defended Justice Allison Riggs’s victory and stopped a dangerous attempt to overturn a free and fair election. His firm represented Governors Roy Cooper and Josh Stein and fought attempts by the General Assembly to exercise executive power.

James lives with his wife Anna, son, dog Sherlock, and cat Clue in Raleigh.

What even is the Court of Appeals?

The Court of Appeals is a statewide court. Everyone gets a vote in choosing our judges, and its decisions affect us all.

The Court reviews thousands of criminal and civil cases each year, and while you might not hear about all of them, these cases can involve our most fundamental rights: the right to an abortion, to a fair trial, to free speech, to vote, and to have your vote count. And because of a recent law change, the Court of Appeals now has the final say in nearly 95% of appellate cases, including major constitutional questions.

Court of Appeals Judges have a very different job from the trial judges we’ve seen in county courthouses (or on TV!). Court of Appeals judges sit in panels of three and do most of their work out of the court room, researching the law and deliberating over decisions with their colleagues.

It might seem obvious, but candidates for the Court of Appeals should have experience with Court of Appeals cases before joining the appellate bench. James is the only candidate with appellate experience in this primary.

A new approach to win.

Democrats have lost every Court of Appeals race since 2018. We must be willing to learn from past mistakes and support new candidates who can win and uphold our rights.

James is running a new kind of judicial campaign. He speaks clearly with voters about his values, the damage done by our current court majorities, and the ways that better courts would improve our lives.

Not everyone is comfortable with this approach. Some think judicial candidates should be silent on these issues. We will never win voters by being silent on what affects their lives most. We must have the courage to meet this moment.