{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"Bobbie Shields","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"Bobbie Shields is the Republican nominee for North Carolina State Senate District\u202f40 in the November\u202f3,\u202f2026 general election. The district\u2019s incumbent, Democrat Joyce\u202fWaddell, will appear on the ballot, and Shields advanced to the general election after the March\u202f3,\u202f2026 primary was cancelled\u202f[1].\n\nBorn May\u202f26,\u202f1953 in Hobgood,\u202fNC, Shields earned a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from North Carolina State University (1975)\u202f[7][6]. He later obtained a Master of Engineering in Structural and Geotechnical Engineering from the University of South Carolina (1981) and an MBA in Finance and Organizational Development from the University of North Carolina\u2011Charlotte (1993\u201194)\u202f[6][7].\n\nShields began his career as a design engineer with Duke Energy, where he worked from 1975 to 1986\u202f[7]. He then spent 27\u202fyears in Mecklenburg County government, serving as County Engineer, Assistant Manager, Manager and ultimately General Manager (1986\u20112013)\u202f[7][14]. In 2014 he founded Shielb Professional Limited Liability Company, acting as owner\u2011manager of the engineering consulting firm\u202f[7][6]. He has held numerous board and committee positions, including past chair of the North Carolina Board of Examiners for Engineers and Surveyors, board member of University City Partners, and member of the Black Republican Club\u202f[6][7][14].\n\nPolitically, Shields has run for the State Senate in 2018, 2020, 2022 and now 2026, challenging the five\u2011term Democratic incumbent each cycle\u202f[1][14][19]. His campaign emphasizes bipartisan economic development, infrastructure investment, and education reform. He supports school choice, fiscal responsibility, limited government, and a \u201ccommon vision\u201d for North Carolina\u202f[14][16]. On social issues, Shields says abortions should be a personal choice and opposes government funding for elective abortions, while also supporting Medicaid expansion and legalizing medical marijuana\u202f[6][19]. He favors regulation of chemical abortion drugs and opposes a blanket ban on abortions\u202f[6].\n\nShields\u2019 professional background in engineering and county administration informs his policy priorities. He cites \u201ctwenty\u2011seven years of leadership in county government\u201d as evidence of his ability to manage public resources and deliver results\u202f[14][16]. His platform calls for bipartisan initiatives to increase economic opportunity, improve infrastructure, and strengthen the education system\u202f[14][16].\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Bobbie Shields - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Bobbie_Shields)\n- [5] [Committee to Elect Bobbie Shields](https://votebobbieshields.com/)\n- [6] [iVoterGuide - Bobbie Shields iVoterGuide Profile](https://ivoterguide.com/candidate/52191/race/17569/election/946)\n- [7] [The Voter's Self Defense System - Vote Smart](https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/183351/bobbie-shields)\n- [8] [Vote-USA | Bobbie Shields | Previous Candidate for State Senator District 40, North Carolina](https://vote-usa.org/Intro.aspx?State=NC&Id=NCShieldsBobbie)\n- [11] [Bobbie Shields | BallotReady](https://www.ballotready.org/people/mr-bobbie-shields)\n- [13] [Bobbie Shields - North Carolina Candidate - Transparency USA](https://www.transparencyusa.org/nc/candidate/bobbie-shields)\n- [14] [Meet The Candidate: Bobbie Shields For NC State Senate | Charlotte, NC Patch](https://patch.com/north-carolina/charlotte/meet-candidate-bobbie-shields-nc-state-senate)\n- [16] [Meet The Candidate: Bobbie Shields For NC State Senate](https://news.yahoo.com/meet-candidate-bobbie-shields-nc-192047691.html)\n- [18] [Bobbie Shields hopes to flip NC Senate 40](https://wbt.com/426053/bobbie-shields-hopes-to-flip-nc-senate-40/)\n- [19] [Bobbie Shields, candidate for NC Senate District 40](https://www.aol.com/news/bobbie-shields-candidate-nc-senate-073506976.html)","firstname":"Bobbie","lastname":"Shields","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"ba6f2871bed65bb5"},"token":"oHZCPX1Pto"},{"candidatename":"Joyce Waddell","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"DEM","person":{"biography":"Joyce Lucille Davis Waddell is the incumbent Democratic State Senator for North Carolina\u2019s 40th Senate District and is seeking re\u2011election in the November\u202f3,\u202f2026 general election\u202f[1]. The district, which includes parts of Mecklenburg County, is represented by Senator Waddell, who first assumed office on January\u202f1,\u202f2015 and is currently serving her sixth term in the Senate\u202f[1][7].\n\nBorn on July\u202f11,\u202f1944, Waddell earned a Bachelor of Science from South Carolina State University and holds three master\u2019s degrees\u2014one each from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, North Carolina A&T State University, and Appalachian State University\u2014before completing a Ph.D. in philosophy at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro\u202f[7][9]. Her extensive academic background underpins a three\u2011decade career in education, including 21\u202fyears as a teacher and administrator within the Charlotte\u2011Mecklenburg Schools system\u202f[1][9].\n\nBefore entering state politics, Waddell served on the Charlotte\u2011Mecklenburg Board of Education from 2009 to 2014, where she helped shape local education policy\u202f[16]. Since her first election in 2014, she has been a consistent presence on key Senate committees, most recently serving on the Appropriations on Education/Higher Education, Appropriations/Base Budget, Health Care, Finance, Pensions and Retirement and Aging, and Rules and Operations of the Senate committees for the 2025\u20112026 session\u202f[6][1]. Her legislative focus has centered on education funding, health care access, and economic issues affecting working families.\n\nIn the 2024\u20112026 election cycle, Waddell\u2019s platform emphasizes raising North Carolina\u2019s minimum wage to $7.25, expanding Medicaid to ensure broader health\u2011care coverage, and increasing funding for public schools, particularly to support teachers\u202f[16]. She has publicly opposed Senate Bill\u202f49, which would restrict curriculum on gender identity and sexuality in early grades and require parental notification of pronoun changes\u202f[16].\n\nWaddell\u2019s public service record includes service on more than 15 boards and community organizations, many focused on children and education, and she remains active in civic groups such as the African American Caucus of the Democratic Party, the Black Women\u2019s Caucus of Mecklenburg County, and the League of Women Voters\u202f[9]. Her office is located at 16\u202fWest\u202fJones\u202fStreet, Room\u202f1106, Raleigh, NC\u202f[3][4], and she can be reached by phone at 919\u2011733\u20115650\u202f[15].\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Joyce Waddell - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Joyce_Waddell)\n- [2] [North Carolina State Senate District 40 - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/North_Carolina_State_Senate_District_40)\n- [3] [Senator Joyce Waddell - Biography - North Carolina General Assembly](https://www.ncleg.gov/Members/Biography/s/393)\n- [4] [Senator Joyce Waddell - Biography - North Carolina General Assembly](https://www.ncleg.gov/Members/Biography/S/393)\n- [6] [Committees - North Carolina General Assembly](https://www.ncleg.gov/Members/Committees/S/393)\n- [7] [Joyce Waddell - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Waddell)\n- [9] [Joyce Waddell's Biography](https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/149844/joyce-waddell)\n- [15] [State Senator Joyce Waddell | BillTrack50](https://www.billtrack50.com/legislatordetail/19781)\n- [16] [Joyce Waddell platform & website | North Carolina State Senator, District 40](https://www.branch.vote/races/2024-nc-general-election-nc-state-state-senator-nc-state-senate-40/candidates/joyce-waddell)\n- [17] [North Carolina State Sen. Joyce Waddell - Biography | LegiStorm](https://www.legistorm.com/person/bio/241007/Joyce_Davis_Waddell.html)\n- [20] [Joyce Waddell | BallotReady](https://www.ballotready.org/people/joyce-waddell-ead2f75a-3d79-413c-b37e-26a31a8ab0a8)","firstname":"Joyce","lastname":"Waddell","middlename":"Davis","suffix":null,"token":"f00ac767f480c03d"},"token":"zm2R2H8maE"}],"choices":null,"description":null,"district":null,"districtgroup":null,"districtgroupname":null,"districtname":null,"job_type":"state_senator","o.office":"state_senate","office":"state_senate","officedescription":"The Tennessee Senate is the upper chamber of the state legislature, with 33 members elected from single-member districts to four-year terms. Senators pass state laws, approve the state budget, confirm certain gubernatorial appointments, and \u2014 with the House \u2014 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 Senator","partisan":1,"pgr":"general","quantity":1,"referendum":null,"source":null,"title":"Nc State Senate District 40"}