Candidate Biography (submitted by candidate):

Dan Blue is State Senator for District 14 in Wake County. Dan has faithfully served residents of Wake County in the North Carolina General Assembly since 1980, having served several terms in the House of Representatives and most recently, in the Senate.  He consistently has been an effective legislator, and was named the most effective member during several terms. In other years, Dan routinely was named among the top ten most effective legislators.  Dan was twice elected by his House colleagues to serve as Speaker of the House from 1991 to 1995.

During the past year, Dan has continued his career of service to the residents of Wake County by serving in the Senate. There, he has sponsored and passed legislation that helped create jobs, improve education, and prevent home foreclosures. He currently serves on several committees, including the Ways and Means, Appropriations on Education, Commerce, Finance, and Judiciary I committees.  Senator Blue chairs the Select Committee on Employee Hospital and Medical Benefits.

Dan was born and raised in Robeson County, North Carolina. He earned a B.S. Degree in Mathematics from North Carolina Central University and a J.D. Degree from Duke University School of Law.  Today, Dan serves as managing partner of Blue Stephens and Fellers, LLP in Raleigh, North Carolina. He also currently serves as Chair of the Board of Trustees of Duke University and as a Board member of Duke University Health System.

Dan lives in Raleigh with his wife, the former Edna Earle Smith, a civic and community leader. They have three adult children, Dan III (wife, Traci); Kanika (husband, Jeff); and Dhamian (wife, Jenna); and three granddaughters. The family attends Davie Street Presbyterian Church where Dan serves as an Elder. Among his interests and hobbies are reading, education policy, and team sports.

Candidate Statement:

I have been blessed and honored to represent the people of Wake County in the North Carolina General Assembly -- 25 years in the House and the past year in the Senate. I have played leadership roles in strengthening our public schools, community colleges and universities, creating a climate for good jobs, improving our criminal justice system, providing for the safety of our citizens, improving our transportation infrastructure and protecting our environment.

Recently, I have led the effort to protect our citizens against unreasonable mortgage foreclosures, to keep healthcare affordable, and to improve confidence in government by promoting ethics and governmental accountability reform.

The challenges to our State in this time of economic uncertainty are daunting, and they test our ability to be great fiscal stewards while providing the framework and resources to allow our people to prosper. I ask you to allow me to continue working for you as your Senator. I pledge to continue efforts to save the jobs we have and to create new ones by recruiting new businesses and strengthening existing ones -- including small businesses; and to ensure that we have a great business climate, with highly skilled workers. I will also work hard to make sure that our schools strive for greatness as all of our students get the teachers and programming they need to succeed. Yet, doing all of this with the fiscal discipline to keep our budget balanced and our spending efficient and effective.

I would be honored to have your support.