College Student Wins GOP Primary in NC Congressional Race

A North Carolina college junior is heading for the general election after defeating a 10-term incumbent state representative. 

21-year-old Wyatt Gable joined “Fox & Friends” Thursday after beating 81-year-old incumbent state Rep. George Cleveland in North Carolina’s Super Tuesday election by 95 votes. Cleveland has represented the district for two decades.

When asked how he won, Gable said it was “just a lot of hard work.”

“A lot of doors knocked, a lot of phone calls made, and just a lot of people that were helping me out, and I really appreciate it.”

Gable said he is “very confident” about winning the seat in November, given that the 14th District is a typically red district.

“We’ve got a lot of Republicans around here and a lot of independents that vote Republican as well. So we’re very confident, but we’re going to put in the work just like we did for the primary.”

The idea behind Gable’s run for office began during the COVID pandemic. After enduring lockdowns and witnessing what he believed was the government stripping away individual freedoms, Gable reached out to his then-Rep. Cleveland with no response.

“I remember I was sitting in my microeconomics class, and I wrote him an email and never heard anything back,” he said. “And I just remember how it felt. And I don’t want anyone to feel the same way I felt, you know, not being left out. So that’s where I got the idea. And here we are now.”

After securing a primary win, Gable is now shifting his focus to the general election in November. 

The East Carolina University junior has a platform focused on education, the China threat and government spending. 

“Big three things. Focusing on education like simple things. Home economics, shop, carpentry so students [are] prepared,” he said. “The Chinese Communist Party owns thousands of acres in North Carolina, so I want to use eminent domain to buy that all back. And then just smart spending. We spend way too much money as a federal government and as a state government. So we need to rein that in so we can lower our taxes.”

In addition to the “big three things,” Gable also hopes by winning the position he could inspire more young Americans to consider joining the Republican Party or to run themselves.

“I feel if people my age and in that age range can see me, someone who’s 21 and younger, be a part of the GOP and the Republican Party, maybe I can help encourage them to feel the same way. [Not] only, you know, run for office themselves, but hopefully you can join the GOP and the conservative side.”

Gable will face off against Democratic candidate Carmen Spicer to represent N.C. House District 14 in the November general election.