Patrick J. Ballantine (born March 17, 1965) is an American attorney and politician who was a
Republican member of the
North Carolina General Assembly
The North Carolina General Assembly is the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of the Government of North Carolina, State government of North Carolina. The legislature consists of two chambers: the North Carolina Senate, Senate and the North Ca ...
, rising to become the
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
Minority Leader and the Republican Party's nominee for
governor in 2004.
Early life and education
Ballantine was born in
Grand Forks, North Dakota
Grand Forks is the third-largest city in the state of North Dakota (after Fargo and Bismarck) and the county seat of Grand Forks County. According to the 2020 census, the city's population was 59,166. Grand Forks, along with its twin city o ...
and moved to North Carolina as a child. He graduated from
Cape Fear Academy
Cape Fear Academy is a private, coeducational PK3–12 school in Wilmington, North Carolina that was established on September 11, 1967 as a segregation academy. It was named for Cape Fear Military Academy, an independent school for boys in Wil ...
in
Wilmington in 1983 and earned a bachelor's degree in political science from the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1987. Ballantine earned a
Juris Doctor
The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law
and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
from the
University of Dayton in 1990.
Career
In 1994, Ballantine became a member of the North Carolina Senate; starting in 1999, he served as the
Republican minority leader. He originally represented the state's fourth Senate district, focussed on
New Hanover county, where he resides in
Wilmington. In the
redistricting
Redistribution (re-districting in the United States and in the Philippines) is the process by which electoral districts are added, removed, or otherwise changed. Redistribution is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral dist ...
that followed the
2000 census, his district became the ninth.
Patrick Ballantine emerged as one of the leading candidates for the Republican gubernatorial nomination to challenge 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 ...
in the
2004 election, although he faced heated competition for the nomination from former
Charlotte mayor
Richard Vinroot and former Congressman
Bill Cobey. In July, both Ballantine and Vinroot received 30% of the vote in a six-way Republican primary, with Ballantine edging out Vinroot by only 1,500 votes statewide. Under North Carolina law, Vinroot could have chosen to seek a runoff; however, he elected not to exercise that option, leaving Ballantine the Republican nominee.
Ballantine stepped down from his General Assembly seat in April in order to focus on his run for governor. His law partner
Woody White was appointed to fill his Senate seat, but was defeated in the general election by Democrat
Julia Boseman.
Ballantine's campaign focused on his youth, optimism, and vision, offering what he referred to as "A New Generation of
Conservative Leadership" for North Carolina; however, Easley's campaign focused on Ballatine's Senate voting record. Ballantine was bested by Easley, the incumbent, by a thirteen-point margin in the
November 2004 general election.
Personal life
He married Lisa Beard on August 10, 1991. They have two children.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ballantine, Patrick J.
1965 births
Living people
Republican Party North Carolina state senators
Politicians from Grand Forks, North Dakota
University of Dayton alumni
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni
21st-century American politicians
Candidates in the 2004 United States elections