No Runoff In NC Lt. Gov. Democratic Primary Race

The race for the Democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor was close but there won't be a runoff.

State Rep. Yvonne Holley took the most votes in last week's election but didn't clear the 30 percent threshold to avoid a runoff. That threat has ended with runner-up Terry Van Duyn now conceding the race.

Van Duyn had been pressured to yield to Holley to avoid an expensive runoff campaign.

The decision means that North Carolina's next lietentant govrnor will likely be African American. Holley is black, as is her Republican opponent Mark Robinson of Greensboro, the top vote-getter in a crowded GOP field. 

While unaffiliated candidates can still get on the ballot with enough signatures, that's extremely unlikely to occur. 

Only one black politician has ever been elected to a statewide Council of State office in North Carolina history: State Auditor Ralph Campbell Jr., a Democrat who was elected in 1992 and served for 12 years.