Spencer B. Merriweather III, the incumbent Mecklenburg County district attorney, is on the ballot for the 2026 general election in District 26. Merriweather is running as a Democrat.

District 26 covers Mecklenburg County, which includes Cornelius, Davidson and Huntersville.

Candidate information

  • Name: Spencer B. Merriweather III
  • Party: Democratic
  • Office sought: North Carolina District Attorney, District 26
  • Election date: Nov. 3, 2026
  • Education: Bachelor's degree in politics, Princeton University (2000); juris doctor, University of North Carolina (2005)

Merriweather grew up in Mobile, Alabama, where he attended Catholic schools through eighth grade and then Murphy High School, according to a North Carolina Bar Association profile. He was student body president at Princeton, Merriweather said in that profile. He is Mecklenburg County's first Black district attorney, according to the Bar Association.

Experience and public service

Governor Roy Cooper appointed Merriweather to the vacant District 26 seat, and he was sworn in Nov. 27, 2017, according to his campaign website. Before that appointment, Merriweather served as an assistant district attorney in the Mecklenburg County District Attorney's Office from 2007 to 2017, according to BallotReady. He worked as a legislative associate in the office of Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton from 2000 to 2002.

Merriweather has held several leadership roles in legal organizations. He served as president of the Mecklenburg Bar Foundation Board and chaired the Criminal Justice Section of the Mecklenburg County Bar, according to the District Attorney's Office website. He has served on the board of directors of the National District Attorneys Association since 2021 and as board chair of the Major County Prosecutors Council at the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys. He is a member of the National Association of Black Prosecutors.

Merriweather also served on the Princeton University Board of Trustees from 2000 to 2004, he said in the Bar Association profile.

On the issues

The following positions come from Merriweather's campaign website and BallotReady responses. They reflect the candidate's stated views.

Sexual assault and child abuse: Merriweather said his office will engage with community stakeholders as part of a local Sexual Assault Response Team to provide more support for sexual assault survivors and hold assailants accountable. On child abuse, he said prosecutors will "continue to work with community and law enforcement partners to make certain those who commit these crimes are aggressively prosecuted."

Guns: Merriweather said reducing illegal gun possession will help keep some families from losing loved ones.

Drug policy: Merriweather said people who suffer from addiction and whose only crime is drug possession "will be given ample opportunity to receive treatment."

Community trust: Merriweather said he will apply the law with impartiality and without prejudice and find new ways to engage the community to build faith and confidence in the criminal justice system.

Endorsements

The following endorsement was reported by BallotReady:

  • Charlotte Post Editorial Board

The general election ballot includes the District 26 district attorney race. Voters can check registration and polling information through the Mecklenburg County Board of Elections.