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GOP incumbent wins NC insurance commissioner race, Dems hold on to Washington

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Incumbent North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey (right) defeated State Sen. Natasha Marcus (left) in what proved to be a contentious race.

Sources: North Carolina Department of Insurance, Natasha Marcus for Insurance Commissioner.

While all eyes were on the US Presidential election Tuesday night, several elections for state insurance commissioners races also wrapped, largely mirroring their states' federal vote trends.

There were five elections for state insurance commissioner across the US on Nov. 5 with the incumbent holding on to their seat in all of the races.

North Carolina

In North Carolina, Republican incumbent Mike Causey defeated his opponent, State Sen. Natasha Marcus, a Democrat who focused her campaign on attacking Causey for misusing his powers and failing to obtain the best insurance rates for consumers.

The race between the two was contentious and hinged on the core issue of insurance affordability and availability of property coverage in the state. North Carolinians have had to contend with rising rates for homeowners' insurance, and the state's market of last resort has drastically expanded over the past several years.

Causey, who will now embark on his third term as commissioner, has previously been scrutinized for media-reported allegations that he improperly awarded jobs to political allies and friends.

In a prior interview with S&P Global Market Intelligence, Causey said he plans to focus his next term on fighting insurance fraud and strengthening state building codes in an effort to bring insurance costs down.

Causey finished the race with 52.2% of the vote to Marcus' 47.8%, according to the North Carolina State Board of Elections. All precincts have reported.

Washington

In Washington state, Democrat Patty Kuderer beat her Republican challenger, Phil Fortunato, securing approximately 57% of the vote, according to the state's election website.

Kuderer, a state senator, will be the state's first new insurance commissioner since current commissioner and fellow Democrat Mike Kreidler took office in 2001.

Per her campaign website, Kuderer cited health insurance as a key priority and said she will hold insurance companies "accountable for their actions."

Fortunato, who is also a state senator, had described Kurderer as an "activist attorney" on his campaign website and claimed people in Washington are being directly financially harmed by the policies pursued by the insurance commissioner.

Washington voters also voted overwhelmingly against a ballot measure that would have allowed residents to opt out of the state's long-term healthcare fund, a program that is the first of its kind in the nation.

Montana

Republican James Brown defeated his Democratic challenger, John Repke, securing 62% of the vote and the position of state auditor and commissioner of securities and insurance.

A member of the Montana Public Service Commission since 2021, Brown will succeed Troy Downing, a fellow Republican who was elected Montana state auditor in November 2020 and who was elected Tuesday to represent the state's second congressional district in the US Congress.

According to his campaign website, Brown said he is seeking to reduce red tape for Montana businesses and protect consumers and safeguard seniors from financial abuse.

Repke, a businessman, campaigned on making insurance more affordable and easier to obtain and criticized Brown on his campaign website for not doing enough to lower insurance rates.

Delaware

Incumbent Delaware Insurance Commissioner Trinidad Navarro held onto his position, securing approximately 58% of the vote to defeat Republican challenger Ralph Taylor.

Navarro was first elected commissioner in 2016 and prior to that served for 20 years with the New Castle County Police Department and was elected New Castle County sheriff in 2010.

According to his campaign website, while in office, Navarro has led hundreds of pro-consumer investigations and implemented policies to better the lives of Delawareans.

Taylor, who also served as a police officer, made similar accessibility and fairness promises on his campaign website and said he would support entrepreneurs and small businesses and embrace new technologies and green energy solutions.

North Dakota

Incumbent North Dakota Jon Godfread was reelected Tuesday, securing more than 98% of the vote in an unopposed race. Godfread, a Republican, was first elected to the position in 2016.