Donna Fay Forga

Current office and 2026 campaign

Donna Fay Forga currently serves as a District Court Judge for District 043 Seat 01 in North Carolina ¹. In December 2024, Chief Justice Paul Newby appointed her to serve as the Chief District Court Judge for District 43 ³⁶. As of May 2026, she is a candidate in the upcoming election for this judicial seat ¹.

Forga’s legal career includes service on the bench of the 30th Judicial District, which covers Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon, and Swain counties ². She has previously filed for reelection to the district court in prior cycles ⁵.

Background and education

Donna Fay Forga was born in 1964 ⁴. She resides in Chapel Hill, North Carolina ⁴. Her professional background includes a long tenure as a district court judge for the 30th Judicial District, which covers Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon, and Swain counties in North Carolina ². More than 40 years prior to her judicial service, Forga was a client of Mountain Projects, Inc., where she accessed stable housing, quality childcare, and higher education opportunities that she states transformed her life ².

Specific details regarding her early upbringing, religious affiliation, or the specific institutions from which she earned degrees are not provided in the available sources.

Career

Donna Fay Forga’s professional background includes service as a district court judge for the 30th Judicial District, which presides over Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon, and Swain counties in North Carolina ². In December 2024, Chief Justice Paul Newby appointed Judge Forga to serve as the Chief District Court Judge for District 43 ^{3 6}.

Prior to her judicial career, Forga was a client of Mountain Projects, Inc. more than 40 years ago; she has stated that community action programs provided her with access to stable housing, quality childcare, and higher education, which led to opportunities that transformed her life ². Official records list her birth year as 1964 and note her residence in Chapel Hill, North Carolina ⁴.

Office history

Donna Fay Forga serves as a District Court Judge for the 30th Judicial District, which presides over Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon, and Swain counties in North Carolina ². In December 2024, Chief Justice Paul Newby appointed her to serve as the Chief District Court Judge for District 43 ³⁶.

Forga previously ran for election to the District 43 seat. She filed for reelection in a cycle that included other district court judges seeking retention or re-election ⁵. In the 2018 general election, she was one of three newcomers elected to the bench in a historic race for District 43 ⁷.

Sources