LIBERTARIAN

Haugh has run for a number of roles including U.S. Senate and House 31. He says he wants to “get government out of the way.” He ran for House District 31 in 2022 and much of his website has not been updated since. He says he was a pizza delivery driver for seven years which instructed him on “how people live.” It is unclear what his qualifications are for Commissioner of Agriculture as there is no other work or educational experience cited on his website. He responded to The Charlotte Ledger’s questionnaire by saying he was “retired and living in Durham.” On his reason for running, he said the following: “My campaign is intended to send a message to our General Assembly to fully legalize marijuana. If you want legal marijuana in N.C., vote for me.” (Age 63)

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DEMOCRAT

Taber is a consultant in the farming industry and the host of a podcast that talks about the U.S. food supply. She wants to diversify the N.C. agriculture industry away from corn and tobacco to higher value fruits and vegetables, invest in rural infrastructure, and promote employee-owned coops. She says that during incumbent Steve Troxler’s tenure, the farm sector “has shrunk by one-fifth” and that he “cozies up to large food companies. She also says that N.C. farmers make less per acre than farmers in Virginia and Georgia. She is an advocate of legalizing cannabis and increasing agricultural infrastructure (e.g. factories). She received a Doctor of Plant Medicine, Plant Protection and Integrated Pest Management from the University of Florida. (Age ~40)

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REPUBLICAN

Troxler has served as the N.C. Commissioner of Agriculture for nearly two decades. Troxler has spent his life focused on agriculture as the founder and operator of his family-owned farm, Troxler Farms, in Guilford County (Greensboro area). He is the past president of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, former chairman of NASDA’s Food Regulation and Nutrition Committee, and serves on the boards of the N.C. Foundation for Soil and Water Conservation, the Rural Economic Development Center and the N.C. Biotechnology Center. While serving as Commissioner, the value of the agriculture industry in North Carolina has increased by nearly $45 billion, according to a speech Troxler made at the N.C. Farm Bureau’s annual meeting in Greensboro. In 1974, Troxler graduated from N.C. State University with a B.S. in conservation and a concentration in environmental studies. He is a grandfather. (Age 72)

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