Martin Luther Nesbitt Jr. (September 25, 1946 – March 6, 2014) was a Democratic member of the North Carolina Senate. He represented the 49th district ( Buncombe County). An attorney from Asheville,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

, Nesbitt was elected to eleven terms in the

state House State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

before moving to the state senate in 2004.

Political career

Nesbitt was first appointed to the House in 1979 to fill out the remainder of the term of his mother,

Mary Cordell Nesbitt Mary Cordell Nesbitt (December 18, 1911 - August 1, 1979) was an American politician. Born in Asheville, North Carolina, Nesbitt went to Buncombe County Junior College. She then received her bachelor's and master's degrees from Western Carolina ...

, who held the House seat until her death. Groomed by one of North Carolina's most famous and influential politicians,

Liston Ramsey Liston Bryan Ramsey (February 26, 1919 – September 2, 2001) was an American politician. A member of the North Carolina House of Representatives for nearly four decades, he held great influence in state government served as Speaker of the House ...

, Nesbitt rose to become an appropriations chairman and top budget writer in the 1990s. Former Speaker of the House Jim Black (who was later incarcerated) found disfavor with Nesbitt after Nesbitt challenged his power in the early 2000s. In February 2004, Martin Nesbitt was appointed to the North Carolina Senate by Governor

Mike Easley Michael Francis Easley (born March 23, 1950) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 72nd governor of North Carolina from 2001 to 2009. He is the first governor of North Carolina to have been convicted of a felony. A member of ...

to fill the vacant seat left by the resignation of

Steve Metcalf Stephen Michael Metcalf is an American lobbyist and former politician. He was a Democratic member of the North Carolina General Assembly representing the state's forty-ninth Senate district, including constituents in Buncombe county. A managem ...

. After moving to the Senate, Nesbitt rose to become chairman of the powerful Judiciary I Civil Committee. Nesbitt was unanimously elected majority leader on November 17, 2009, replacing

Tony Rand Anthony Eden Rand (September 1, 1939 – May 1, 2020) was an American attorney and politician who served as a member of the North Carolina General Assembly from 1981 to 1989 and again from 1995 to 2009. Early life Rand was born in southern Wake ...

. Prior to his election, he received an endorsement from Senate President Pro Tempore Marc Basnight, a powerful nod in North Carolina politics. After Democrats lost their Senate majority in the 2010 elections, Nesbitt was unanimously elected minority leader for the next legislature. He stepped down as minority leader in 2014 for health reasons, and was succeeded by Sen.

Daniel T. Blue Jr. Daniel Terry Blue Jr. (born April 18, 1949) is an American politician and attorney serving as a member of the North Carolina Senate, representing the state's 14th Senate district, and is the Senate minority leader. Early life and education Bl ...

Within two days of resigning from the leadership, Nesbitt died.

Committees

Nesbitt was in several senate committees: *Appropriations/Base Budget *Commerce *Finance *Judiciary I *Mental Health & Youth Services *Redistricting *Rules and Operations of the Senate *State and Local Government

Education and personal life

Nesbitt earned his bachelor's degree from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

in 1970 and his law degree from UNC in 1973. He was married with two grown children and two grandchildren at the time of his death. He died on March 6, 2014, one week after being diagnosed with stomach cancer. He was 67.

Electoral history

2012

2010

2008

2006

2004

2002

References

External links

Official site
, - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Nesbitt, Martin Democratic Party North Carolina state senators Democratic Party members of the North Carolina House of Representatives North Carolina lawyers 2014 deaths 1946 births University of North Carolina School of Law alumni Politicians from Asheville, North Carolina Deaths from stomach cancer Deaths from cancer in North Carolina 21st-century American politicians 20th-century American lawyers