{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"Stephen LaRoque","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\n\nStephen Alexander LaRoque filed as a Republican candidate for Lenoir County Board of Commissioners, District 2, in the 2026 election cycle [4]. He does not currently hold public office.\n\n## Background and education\n\nLaRoque was born August 15, 1963, and lives in Kinston, Lenoir County, North Carolina [1][2]. He earned a B.S.B.A. in finance from East Carolina University and an MBA from the East Carolina University Graduate School of Business [2]. According to the North Carolina voter file, he has been registered to vote in Lenoir County since 1992 as a Republican [5].\n\n## Career\n\nLaRoque worked in finance for NCNB/NationsBank from 1986 to 1992, rising to assistant vice-president and city manager, before moving into nonprofit economic and community development work. He founded and led East Carolina Development Company and Piedmont Development Company, Kinston-based nonprofits, and continued to work as a consultant to other community-development organizations [2].\n\n## Office history\n\nLaRoque represented North Carolina House District 10 \u2014 covering Greene, Lenoir, and Wayne counties \u2014 in two non-consecutive stretches: January 2003 to January 2007, and January 2011 to August 2012 [1]. He won election in 2002, 2004, and 2010, lost to Democrat Van Braxton in 2008, and lost the May 2012 Republican primary to John Bell after being indicted on federal charges [1][2].\n\n## Documented disputes and controversies\n\nLaRoque was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of misappropriating money from a federal loan program administered through a Kinston nonprofit he ran; prosecutors alleged he redirected loans intended for small businesses in underserved rural areas [1]. He resigned from the North Carolina House in July 2012 after the indictment [1]. He was originally convicted on 12 counts including theft, money laundering, and filing false tax returns, but all but two counts were later set aside by a federal judge due to juror misconduct and a new trial was ordered; LaRoque then pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting theft [1]. Prosecutors said he took $2.7 million in federal funds; he pleaded guilty to stealing $150,000 for his personal benefit and said the money was deferred salary he was owed, which he intended to repay after receiving an inheritance [3]. He was released from federal prison in May 2017 after serving one year and nine months [1][3].\n\n## Sources\n\n[1] [Stephen A. LaRoque - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_A._LaRoque) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-19\n\n[2] [Stephen LaRoque - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Stephen_LaRoque) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-19\n\n[3] [\"Stephen LaRoque serves time, released from federal prison\" - WCTI](http://www.wcti12.com/news/local-news/lenoir/stephen-laroque-serves-time-released-from-federal-prison/500080989) (2017-05-15) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-19\n\n[4] North Carolina State Board of Elections, 2026 Candidate Filing listing (`Candidate_Listing_2026.csv`) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-19\n\n[5] [North Carolina State Board of Elections \u2014 Voter Search](https://vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/)","firstname":"Stephen","lastname":"Laroque","middlename":"Alexander","suffix":null,"token":"c139f239c858786d"},"token":"OAT6fRH9v_Gql71r"},{"candidatename":"BJ Murphy","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"According to the North Carolina voter file, Lenwood Morris Murphy JR is a registered voter in Lenoir County, North Carolina, registered since 1998 (28 years), with party affiliation listed as Republican [1].\n\nThe voter file shows Lenwood Morris Murphy JR's year of birth as 1980; NC publishes only the year of birth in its bulk voter export, so day and month are not part of the public record [1].\n\nThe voter history file shows 20 elections voted in since 2016, most recently the 2026-03-03 primary election [2].\n\nThis summary draws only from the public North Carolina voter registration and history records. No additional published biographical information was located. Voters with personal knowledge of Lenwood Morris Murphy JR can reach ballotproject.org with corrections or additions.\n\n## Sources\n[1] [North Carolina State Board of Elections \u2014 Voter Search](https://vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/)\n\n[2] North Carolina State Board of Elections voter history file (`ncvhis_Statewide`), published at [dl.ncsbe.gov](https://dl.ncsbe.gov/)","firstname":"Lenwood","lastname":"Murphy","middlename":"Morris","suffix":"JR","token":"d2660403de397ed1"},"token":"vrVauykAICAZIYaL"}],"choices":null,"description":null,"district":null,"districtgroup":null,"districtgroupname":null,"districtname":null,"job_type":"county_commissioner","o.office":"county_commission","office":"county_commission","officedescription":"A county commissioner is a member of the county's legislative body. The commission approves the county budget, sets the property-tax rate, authorizes borrowing, and passes county resolutions and ordinances. Commissioners are elected from districts (or at-large seats) to represent constituents on countywide policy.","officequalities":"- Policy judgment on countywide matters \u2014 budget, taxes, land use, services, and intergovernmental issues \u2014 within Tennessee county-government law.\n- Budget literacy: the commission approves the county budget, sets the property-tax rate, and authorizes multi-year bond issues.\n- Legislative process: drafting, amending, and voting on resolutions and ordinances; committee work that pre-screens items.\n- Constituent relations in the district \u2014 case-work and community issues flow through the commissioner's office.\n- Willingness to complete the state-required annual continuing education through UT CTAS.","officeterm":4,"officetitle":"County Commissioner","partisan":1,"pgr":"general","quantity":1,"referendum":null,"source":null,"title":"Lenoir County Board Of Commissioners District 02"}