{"biography":"Phillip Ray Shepard is the incumbent Republican member of the North Carolina House of Representatives for District 15 and is seeking re\u2011election in the November 3, 2026 general election [1][11][16].  He represents Onslow County and has served continuously since first taking office in 2011, having been elected to eight terms in the state House [1][16][20].\n\nBorn on November 10, 1954 in Jacksonville, North Carolina, Shepard attended Jacksonville Senior High and later earned coursework at Coastal Carolina Community College [11][16][20].  He spent 36 years working for the Traffic Management Office at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, retiring from civil service before entering full\u2011time politics.  For more than a decade he also served as pastor of Lighthouse Baptist Church, a role he continues in a retired capacity [1][16][20].\n\nShepard\u2019s legislative career began with his 2010 election to the House, and he has since held a variety of leadership positions.  He is Vice Chair of the Appropriations Committee and Chair of the Transportation Committee, as well as Chair of the Appropriations\u2011on\u2011Transportation subcommittee and a member of the Commerce, Education\u2011K\u201112, Health, and Homeland Security, Military and Veterans Affairs committees in the 2023\u20112024 session [1][9][16].  Over the past decade he has consistently chaired the Transportation Committee and served as Vice Chair of Appropriations, reflecting a focus on infrastructure and fiscal policy.\n\nDuring his tenure Shepard has highlighted several policy achievements.  He cites delivering lower taxes, promoting economic growth, and expanding transportation infrastructure for his district.  In the 2023 session he helped pass a $95\u202fmillion increase in K\u201112 funding to support enrollment growth and to eliminate the waitlist for roughly 55,000 families seeking opportunity scholarships, underscoring his emphasis on school choice and education funding [20].  He also notes a record of constituent transparency through newsletters and open communication channels.\n\nShepard\u2019s community involvement includes service on the Onslow County Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, the Little League Baseball coaching staff, and leadership roles with the NRA and the Onslow County Republican Party.  He continues to reside in Jacksonville, NC, at 111 Vernon Shepard Lane, and maintains both a campaign email (shepardponslow@aol.com) and a legislative email (phil.shepard@ncleg.gov) for constituent outreach [20].\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Phillip Shepard - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Phillip_Shepard)\n- [8] [Representative Phil Shepard - Biography - North Carolina General Assembly](https://www.ncleg.gov/Members/Biography/H/628)\n- [11] [Phil Shepard - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_Shepard)\n- [15] [Voter Guide Profile for NC State Rep., Dist. 15 candidate - Phillip Shepard](https://ivoterguide.com/candidate/1991/race/8442/election/1206)\n- [16] [Phil Shepard's Biography](https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/117801/phil-shepard)\n- [20] [Shepard, Schulte seek District 15 in House race | News | jdnews.com](https://www.jdnews.com/news/shepard-schulte-seek-district-15-in-house-race/article_9333fd9b-2e7a-5b4d-be2a-1bcc9d885ea3.html)","campaigns":[{"contest":"state_house_015","county":"onslow","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Tue, 03 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"NC","title":"Nc House Of Representatives District 015"}],"cf_filings":[],"firstname":"Phillip","fullname":"Phillip Ray Shepard","lastname":"Shepard","middlename":"Ray","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"state_house_015","contest_title":"Nc House Of Representatives District 015","county":"onslow","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-11-03","office_county":null,"office_key":"state_house","office_title":"State Representative","party":"REP","pgr":"general","state":"NC"}],"county":null,"cycles":[{"general":{"contest":"state_house_015","contest_title":"Nc House Of Representatives District 015","county":"onslow","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-11-03","office_county":null,"office_key":"state_house","office_title":"State Representative","party":"REP","pgr":"general","state":"NC"},"party":"REP","primary":null,"term":null,"year":2026}],"office_key":"state_house","office_title":"State Representative","state":"NC","terms":[]}],"summary":"Phillip Ray Shepard is the Republican incumbent for North Carolina House District\u202f15, running for re\u2011election in 2026.","terms":[],"token":"08b4dd09feae6656"}