Rockingham sheriff seeks NC lieutenant governor nomination, ending speculation over Berger challenge
Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page filed official candidacy paperwork in his campaign for North Carolina lieutenant governor, ending weeks of speculation that he might challenge the state’s most powerful Republican politician, Senate leader Phil Berger, in a state Senate race.
Page filed the paperwork Thursday with state elections officials. After filing, he confirmed that he met Wednesday with Berger but declined to provide many details about the discussion. Asked if a deal was struck to keep him out of Berger’s Senate race, Page said no.
“I don't make deals,” Page said. “I don't make deals with criminals, and I don't make deals with anybody else. I listened. I was invited. I came and listened. At the end of the day I'm running for the position I have chosen, that I feel best suits what I'm trying to do.”
Dylan Watts, director of the Senate Republican caucus, confirmed the meeting and said the two had a “good, frank conversation.”
“No deals were proposed, no deals were accepted,” Watts said in a text message.
Page announced his campaign for lieutenant governor in May, but a public fight with Berger over plans to bring a casino to Rockingham County — where they both live — fueled speculation that Page might challenge the long-time Republican lawmaker for his state Senate seat instead.
A poll that was released anonymously late last month purported to show Page with a 30 point lead over Berger in a hypothetical Republican primary matchup. A clandestine effort to recruit Page or another candidate to challenge Berger had traction, people familiar with the matter told WRAL.
The group behind the poll, the North Carolina Conservative Project, doesn't appear to be registered with the State Board of Elections or anywhere else, and Watts said Thursday that Berger's campaign had filed a formal complaint with the board "calling for an investigation into the unregistered political committee operating in violation of state law."
Page wouldn’t say Thursday how close he came to running against Berger. “I looked at all my options,” he said. He called the polling “very interesting and encouraging.”
Filing in the lieutenant governor’s race, and North Carolina’s other 2024 elections, opened nearly two weeks ago, and it closes Friday at noon.
At least seven other Republicans have filed in the lieutenant governor’s race, including former state Sen. Deanna Ballard and state Rep. Jeffrey Elmore.
Page’s filing comes a day before the candidate filing deadline. Also filing Thursday: The man leaving the position Page is seeking to fill.
Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the front-runner for the Republican gubernatorial nomination, also submitted his official paperwork.
Robinson, who was in Florida Tuesday for a fundraiser with former President Donald Trump, was under the weather, but in a softer-than-normal voice said he was “nervous, but super excited” about the campaign.
State Treasurer Dale Folwell and Salisbury attorney Bill Graham have filed to run against Robinson and pledged millions of their own money to fund their campaigns. Former state Sen. Andy Wells has also announced a gubernatorial run, but he hadn’t filed his paperwork as of late Thursday. All three are polling far behind Robinson, though nearly 50% of Republican voters say they’re undecided in the race.
