{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nMelissa Grant Zehner is the Democratic nominee for North Carolina State Senate District 1, on the ballot in the November 3, 2026 general election [1][2]. District 1 covers Bertie, Camden, Currituck, Dare, Gates, Hertford, Northampton, Pasquotank, Perquimans, and Tyrrell counties [2]. She faces Republican Jerry Tillett; incumbent Sen. Bobby Hanig did not seek re-election, running instead for the U.S. House 1st Congressional District seat [2]. Zehner filed as a candidate on December 19, 2025, and her NC State Board of Elections filing lists her residence as Southern Shores, in Dare County [1].\n\nNo further biographical information (education, career, or prior elected office) about this candidate is confirmed by public sources.\n\n## Sources\n[1] NC State Board of Elections, 2026 Candidate Filing List \u2014 accessed 2026-07-20 (https://s3.amazonaws.com/dl.ncsbe.gov/Elections/2026/Candidate%20Filing/Candidate_Listing_2026.csv)\n[2] [Meet your Bertie County Candidates for the 2026 Election](https://wcti12.com/news/election/local-election/meet-your-bertie-county-candidates-for-the-2026-election)","campaigns":[{"contest":"state_senate_001","county":"bertie","county_count":16,"electiondate":"Tue, 03 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"nc","title":"Nc State Senate District 01"}],"cf_filings":[],"firstname":"Melissa","fullname":"Melissa Grant Zehner","lastname":"Zehner","middlename":"Grant","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"state_senate_001","contest_title":"Nc State Senate District 01","county":"bertie","county_count":16,"electiondate":"2026-11-03","office_county":null,"office_key":"state_senate","office_title":"State Senator","party":"DEM","pgr":"general","state":"nc"}],"county":null,"cycles":[{"general":{"contest":"state_senate_001","contest_title":"Nc State Senate District 01","county":"bertie","county_count":16,"electiondate":"2026-11-03","office_county":null,"office_key":"state_senate","office_title":"State Senator","party":"DEM","pgr":"general","state":"nc"},"party":"DEM","primary":null,"term":null,"year":2026}],"office_key":"state_senate","office_title":"State Senator","state":"NC","terms":[]}],"summary":"Melissa Grant Zehner is the Democratic candidate for North Carolina State Senate District\u202f1 in the 2026 election.","terms":[],"token":"b3097f1f45b6e212"}