Josh Stein wins North Carolina governor's race

Josh Stein will be moving from his role as North Carolina attorney general to the governor's seat.

After competing in a contentious and nationally watched race against Republican competitor Mark Robinson, Stein managed to pull ahead with a strong lead, according to partial election results.

The race between Stein and Robinson was one to watch from the very beginning with Robinson, a provocative working-class man with a trail of bad media attention, and Stein, a Harvard-educated lawyer who has been in politics for years. The pair fought to fill Gov. Roy Cooper's spot in the executive mansion as he was ineligible to run again after serving two consecutive terms.

Stein, a 58-year-old from Raleigh, North Carolina, will soon serve as the state's first Jewish governor.

He has a long history of public service, serving as a state senator and senior deputy attorney general. Stein was the leader in the polls for weeks, sometimes by double digits, while Robinson tried to push aside provocative rhetoric that followed his campaign including the allegations from CNN, which he denies.

Both candidates focused heavily on education throughout the campaign trail, with abortion also taking the spotlight.

On the reproductive rights front, Stein capitalized on Robinson's muddied position on abortion and inflammatory comments about the topic. Stein, who was endorsed by Planned Parenthood Votes! South Atlantic, has been an advocate for women's choice whereas Robinson supports the North Carolina legislature's decision to tighten restrictions in 2023.

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Once in office, Stein said Hurricane Helene relief funding will be his top priority, the News and Observer reported, considering the storm caused billions in damages to the state, and the General Assembly is likely to continue taking up relief bills in the upcoming sessions.

Joseph Pierre from the Fayetteville Observer contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Josh Stein wins North Carolina governor's race