{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"Phil Rubin","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"DEM","person":{"biography":"Phil Rubin is the incumbent Democratic member of the North Carolina House of Representatives for District\u202f40, covering parts of Wake County. He is on the ballot for re\u2011election in the November\u202f3,\u202f2026 general election, having advanced unopposed after the March\u202f3,\u202f2026 Democratic primary was cancelled\u202f[1].\n\nBorn Phillip\u202fAnthony\u202fRubin on August\u202f17,\u202f1983, he earned a Bachelor of Arts magna cum laude from the University of Georgia and a Juris Doctor summa cum laude (along with an MA) from Duke University School of Law, where he served as editor\u2011in\u2011chief of the Duke Law Journal\u202f[7][14]. After law school he clerked for Chief Judge David Sentelle of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit\u202f[7][11]. He then practiced at the Washington, D.C., firm Covington &\u202fBurling before joining the U.S. Department of Justice as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of North Carolina, handling constitutional appeals and prosecuting gun\u2011violence, environmental, and child\u2011abuse cases\u202f[7][11][16]. Later he served as a Special Deputy Attorney General at the North Carolina Department of Justice, focusing on constitutional litigation and child\u2011safety matters\u202f[7][14][18].\n\nRubin\u2019s legal career also included a stint at Meta, where he worked on online\u2011safety initiatives\u202f[16]. In January\u202f2025 Governor Josh\u202fStein appointed him to fill the vacancy created by the death of Rep.\u202fJoe\u202fJohn; the Wake County Democratic Executive Committee had recommended Rubin for the seat, and he was sworn in on January\u202f29,\u202f2025\u202f[3][16][20].\n\nDuring the 2025\u20112026 legislative session Rubin has sponsored a range of bills, including HR\u202f18 honoring the late Rep.\u202fJoe\u202fJohn, HB\u202f20 supporting the Fair Maps Act, HB\u202f31 proposing a state holiday for Election Day, and HB\u202f174/175 advancing marriage\u2011equality legislation\u202f[5]. He has also introduced measures on veterans\u2019 cemeteries, Medicaid dental rates, military\u2011education promises, vehicle\u2011telematics restrictions, COLA for retirees, prostate\u2011cancer programs, and reforms to election law and gun safety\u202f[5].\n\nRubin\u2019s stated priorities on his campaign website emphasize fully funding public schools and raising teacher pay, commonsense gun\u2011safety laws, economic policies that promote fair wages and affordable housing, and ending partisan gerrymandering to restore voter accountability\u202f[14]. He describes himself as a former federal prosecutor and online\u2011safety expert who \u201cfights for people who can\u2019t afford to lose\u201d\u202f[14].\n\nRubin resides in Raleigh with his wife, Katelyn Love, a former chief counsel to the North Carolina State Board of Elections, and their daughter\u202f[7]. He is the brother of Jeopardy!\u202fMasters champion Victoria\u202fGroce\u202f[7].\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Phil Rubin - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Phil_Rubin)\n- [2] [North Carolina elections, 2026 - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/North_Carolina_elections,_2026)\n- [3] [Representative Phil Rubin - Biography - North Carolina General Assembly](https://www.ncleg.gov/Members/Biography/H/844)\n- [4] [District 40 Representation - North Carolina General Assembly](https://www.ncleg.gov/Members/DistrictRepresentation/H/40)\n- [5] [Representative Phil Rubin's Introduced Bills - North Carolina General Assembly](https://www.ncleg.gov/Members/IntroducedBills/H/844)\n- [7] [Phil Rubin - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_Rubin)\n- [8] [North Carolina's 40th House district - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Carolina's_40th_House_district)\n- [10] [I am proud to appoint Phil Rubin, a former prosecutor and ...](https://www.facebook.com/NCgovernor/posts/i-am-proud-to-appoint-phil-rubin-a-former-prosecutor-and-colleague-at-ncdoj-to-f/1147707386724789/)\n- [11] [Phil Rubin](https://grokipedia.com/page/phil_rubin)\n- [14] [Home | Phil Rubin | NC House District 40](https://www.philrubin.com/)\n- [15] [Rep. Phil Rubin | North Carolina 2025-2026 | TrackBill](https://trackbill.com/legislator/north-carolina-representative-phil-rubin/1063-28908/)\n- [16] [Wake Dems select Rubin to succeed John in NC House | | dailyadvance.com](https://www.dailyadvance.com/wake-dems-select-rubin-to-succeed-john-in-nc-house/article_74194b66-de4b-11ef-8674-77971da83e72.html)\n- [17] [North Carolina State Rep. Phil Rubin - Biography | LegiStorm](https://www.legistorm.com/person/bio/533814/Phillip_Anthony_Rubin.html)\n- [18] [Phil Rubin- House District 40](https://nchousedems.com/our-members/phil-rubin-house-district-40/)\n- [20] [Democrats tap ex-prosecutor Phil Rubin to fill seat of late Rep. Joe John](https://andersonalerts.substack.com/p/phil-rubin-to-join-legislature)","firstname":"Phillip","lastname":"Rubin","middlename":"Anthony","suffix":null,"token":"b4ae03596ee2d157"},"token":"8R_P3yZ-aNiMHCzg"},{"candidatename":"Lucas Everett Jones","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"LIB","person":{"biography":"Lucas Everett Jones is the Libertarian Party nominee for the North Carolina House of Representatives, District 40 (Wake County), on the November 3, 2026 general-election ballot [1][2]. The Libertarian primary for the office, originally scheduled for March 3, 2026, was canceled, and Jones advanced directly to the general election, where he faces Democratic incumbent Phil Rubin [1][2].\n\nPublicly available sources provide no details about Jones's education, professional background, or prior public service; his Ballotpedia entry lists only his candidacy and party affiliation. A Libertarian Party of North Carolina Facebook post introducing him to voters said he was willing to appear on podcasts to discuss his experience and positions, but did not name specific policy positions [3].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Lucas Jones (North Carolina) - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Lucas_Jones_(North_Carolina)) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-19\n[2] [NC State Board of Elections \u2014 2026 Candidate Listing](https://s3.amazonaws.com/dl.ncsbe.gov/Elections/2026/Candidate%20Filing/Candidate_Listing_2026.csv) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-19\n[3] [North Carolina Libertarian candidate for State House District 40 Lucas Jones - Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/libertarianparty/posts/north-carolina-libertarian-candidate-for-state-house-district-40-lucas-jones/1475034050645287/) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-19","firstname":"Lucas","lastname":"Jones","middlename":"Everett","suffix":null,"token":"2a36f8509e9254ea"},"token":"uOoJv5fWwnVF0ooa"}],"choices":null,"description":null,"district":null,"districtgroup":null,"districtgroupname":null,"districtname":null,"job_type":"state_representative","o.office":"state_house","office":"state_house","officedescription":"The Tennessee House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the state legislature, with 99 members elected from single-member districts to two-year terms. Representatives pass state laws, originate revenue bills, approve the state budget, and \u2014 with the Senate \u2014 confirm gubernatorial appointments and propose constitutional amendments.","officequalities":"- **Integrity** \u2014 Acts in the interest of constituents and the public good rather than for personal gain, and remains independent of undue influence from donors, lobbyists, and party leadership.\n- **Understanding of the constituency** \u2014 Grasps both the economic-development needs of the district and the day-to-day concerns of individual residents \u2014 safety, healthcare, education, infrastructure.\n- **Persuasion** \u2014 Engages, listens to, and persuades both fellow legislators and constituents. Can change minds and explain votes honestly.\n- **Legislative craft** \u2014 Reads, drafts, and amends statute with care. Understands how specific bill language translates to outcomes, and knows the body of law being modified.\n- **Coalition-building** \u2014 Finds common ground across partisan and factional lines, brokers compromises that hold, and forms working majorities even when consensus is hard to reach.","officeterm":2,"officetitle":"State Representative","partisan":1,"pgr":"general","quantity":1,"referendum":null,"source":null,"title":"Nc House Of Representatives District 040"}