Candidates for state treasurer go 'On the Record'

North Carolina voters will choose a new state treasurer this fall to replace Janet Cowell, a Democrat, who did not to seek re-election.

Republican Dale Folwell and Democrat Dan Blue III talked about why they should be the state's next top financial executive during this week's episode of "On the Record."

Folwell is a former state lawmaker and served as an assistant commerce secretary overseeing the state's unemployment compensation system. Blue is a former Wake County Democratic Party chairman and currently practices business law with his family's law firm.

North Carolina's state treasurer oversees a pension fund currently worth about $87 billion and helps run the health plan that serves teachers, state workers and retirees. The next treasurer will have to navigate how to keep health care costs down without alienating workers as well as how to produce expected returns on pension plan investments.

Along with the governor and the attorney general, the state treasurer is one of 10 independently-elected statewide offices.