Current:Home > MarketsNorth Carolina State Auditor Beth Wood says she won’t seek reelection in 2024, in a reversal -WealthX
North Carolina State Auditor Beth Wood says she won’t seek reelection in 2024, in a reversal
View
Date:2025-04-15 12:07:48
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina State Auditor Beth Wood, who received unwanted attention earlier this year after a traffic-related court plea, announced on Wednesday that she won’t seek reelection in 2024 after all.
Wood, a Democrat who was first elected as auditor in 2008, revealed her decision publicly at the close of her testimony before an oversight committee at the Legislative Building, citing in part her age and “some circumstances that are in my life.” Wood told reporters after the meeting that she wanted to start a public speaking career and another term would delay that.
“I have loved this job and am proud of the work we have done to bring accountability to State Government,” Wood said in a separate written statement. “My heart is filled with gratitude to the voters who put their confidence in me for four terms. But I will be 70 in April and so it will be time to say farewell at the end of my current term.”
Wood had said in June that she would be seeking reelection. Three months earlier she pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for leaving the scene of a December 2022 crash in which she drove her state-owned vehicle into a parked car. A judge sentenced her to pay fines and court costs.
No one was hurt in the accident, which occurred after Wood left a holiday party in downtown Raleigh. Her citation became public in January. Wood apologized, saying she had made a “grave mistake” and should have waited to let the accident play out.
Without specifically mentioning the crash in her statement Wednesday, Wood said: “I know that I have made mistakes along the way, but I have acknowledged them and have learned from them.”
A Craven County native, Wood is a certified public accountant who worked in the State Auditor’s Office for nearly 10 years before she defeated incumbent Auditor Les Merritt in the 2008 election.
For years Wood was among the Republicans’ favorite Democrats as her office issued audits critical of state government operations and looking at ways to halt fiscal waste. But she sometimes came to loggerheads with officials who were the subject of negative reports.
Wood cited successes Wednesday including audits that identified unemployment benefit checks totaling hundreds of millions of dollars that were sent late and that determined more than 20 physicians with revoked or suspended licenses were regularly treating Medicaid patients.
Wood told House members she still has plenty of work left: “We’ve got 14 months to kick some butt, so we will get it done in the next 14 months.”
Her announcement creates another open seat on the Council of State, which is composed of 10 statewide elected officials.
Six current council members — Gov. Roy Cooper and Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson among them — have said they are either not seeking reelection or running for a different office. Candidate filing begins in December, with primary elections to follow in March. Several Republicans previously announced that they were running for auditor.
veryGood! (27337)
Related
- Newly elected West Virginia lawmaker arrested and accused of making terroristic threats
- Love and badminton: China's Huang Yaqiong gets Olympic gold medal and marriage proposal
- Giant pandas return to nation's capital by end of year | The Excerpt
- Christina Hall Slams Estranged Husband Josh Hall’s Message About “Hope”
- Questlove charts 50 years of SNL musical hits (and misses)
- Judge suspends Justin Timberlake’s driver’s license over DWI arrest in New York
- Trump election subversion case returned to trial judge following Supreme Court opinion
- Miss Teen West Virginia Has the Perfect Bounce Back After Falling Off Stage at Competition
- Will the 'Yellowstone' finale be the last episode? What we know about Season 6, spinoffs
- Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick's Son James Wilkie Shares Rare Photo of Family in Paris
Ranking
- Working Well: When holidays present rude customers, taking breaks and the high road preserve peace
- Harris has secured enough Democratic delegate votes to be the party’s nominee, committee chair says
- D23 Ultimate Disney Fan Event Unveils Star Wars, Marvel & More Collections: An Exclusive First Look
- The Daily Money: Scammers pose as airline reps
- Buckingham Palace staff under investigation for 'bar brawl'
- First two kickoff under NFL’s new rules are both returned to the 26
- Lululemon's 'We Made Too Much' Section is on Fire Right Now: Score a $228 Jacket for $99 & More
- General Hospital's Cameron Mathison Steps Out With Aubree Knight Hours After Announcing Divorce
Recommendation
How to watch new prequel series 'Dexter: Original Sin': Premiere date, cast, streaming
Doomed: Is Robert Downey Jr.'s return really the best thing for the MCU?
Baseball team’s charter bus catches fire in Iowa; no one is hurt
USA's Casey Kaufhold, Brady Ellison win team archery bronze medal at Paris Olympics
Who are the most valuable sports franchises? Forbes releases new list of top 50 teams
Swimmer Tamara Potocka under medical assessment after collapsing following race
Books similar to 'Verity' by Colleen Hoover: Read these twisty romantic thrillers next
Billie Eilish and Charli XCX Dance on Pile of Underwear in NSFW Guess Music Video