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Justin Edward Dues
Office history
Current office and 2026 campaign
Justin Edward Dues is a Democrat from Concord, North Carolina, who ran in the March 3, 2026 primary for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Republican Thom Tillis 12. He filed with the State Board of Elections on December 18, 2025 and appeared on the ballot as "Justin E. Dues" 1. He is registered with the Federal Election Commission as candidate S6NC00456 6.
Dues finished second in a six-candidate field with 22,295 votes (2.69 percent); former Gov. Roy Cooper won the primary with 761,345 votes (91.98 percent) and advanced to the November 3, 2026 general election 34.
Dues was previously the Democratic nominee in North Carolina's 8th Congressional District in 2024, losing to Republican Mark Harris by 238,640 votes (59.6 percent) to 161,709 (40.4 percent) 5. He told Elon News Network that the 2024 campaign shaped his decision to run statewide: "That's part of the reason I switched to the Senate race, because you can't gerrymander out an entire state, whereas you can gerrymander 14 districts within it" 4.
He campaigned on a platform he abbreviated as ACT - affordability, ending corruption and togetherness - and said his campaign accepted no donations over $200 and no political action committee money 4. In his WCTI candidate questionnaire he wrote that he was running because "North Carolina and the country are stuck in an affordability crisis that's being made worse by corruption in both parties," listing a phased $30-an-hour living wage by 2030, "healthcare as a human right," housing affordability measures and anti-corruption reforms including term limits and overturning Citizens United; WCTI notes that its candidate answers come from the candidate and have not been fact-checked 2.
Background and education
The North Carolina voter registration file lists Dues's year of birth as 1985 and his state of birth as Ohio, and shows him registered as a Democrat in Cabarrus County since April 2021 7. State voter history records show he has voted in 10 elections since 2016, including every general election from 2016 through 2024 and the March 3, 2026 primary 8.
Career
Dues served in the U.S. Marine Corps. His WCTI candidate questionnaire describes him as a "Marine Corps Squad Leader from 2003 to 2012" and "a veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan" 2; Elon News Network reported that he served nine years in the Marine Corps and afterward worked in the private sector 4.
Sources
Public filings
Candidates and officeholders are required by law to file campaign finance reports and statements of economic interest. The sites below don't support direct links to an individual record — search by last name on each.
North Carolina — campaign finance
- State, county, and municipal candidates — all in one system — NC State Board of Elections — Committee Search. Search by last name “Dues”.
North Carolina — statement of economic interest
- Required for state-elected and many local officials — NC State Ethics Commission — Statement of Economic Interest Search. Search by last name “Dues”.
Federal offices — campaign finance
- US House, US Senate, and Presidential candidates file with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), not with state systems — FEC candidate search. Filter by office, state, and cycle to narrow the results. Financial disclosures (personal assets and income) for members of Congress and congressional candidates are filed with the US House Clerk or US Senate Office of Public Records, depending on the office.