Tony Gurley (born April 3, 1956) is an American businessman and political figure from

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 ...

, currently serving as chief operating officer for the Office of State Budget and Management. He served on the

Wake County Board of Commissioners The Wake County Board of Commissioners is the governing board for Wake County, which includes the City of Raleigh. As of the 2010 census, the population of Wake County was 900,993 making it North Carolina's second most populated county. Its county ...

from his election in 2002 until he resigned in 2014 to take the state position. Gurley served as vice-chairman of the board of commissioners in 2005 and as chairman in 2006–2007, and 2010. By education, Gurley is both a pharmacist and attorney. He is a member of the North Carolina Republican Party. In 2011, Gurley filed paperwork to run for

Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina The lieutenant governor of North Carolina is the second-highest elected official in the U.S. state of North Carolina and is the only elected official to have powers in both the legislative and executive branches of state government. A member o ...

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

, but was subsequently defeated by

Dan Forest Dan Forest (born October 15, 1967) is an American politician who served as the 34th lieutenant governor of North Carolina from 2013 to 2021. He is the son of former congresswoman Sue Myrick. An architect by trade, he was the Republican nominee ...

in the Republican primary.

Early life, education and business career

Gurley was born and raised in McDowell County in

Western North Carolina Western North Carolina (often abbreviated as WNC) is the region of North Carolina which includes the Appalachian Mountains; it is often known geographically as the state's Mountain Region. It contains the highest mountains in the Eastern United ...

. After graduating from high school, Tony attended

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

and received his Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy in 1978. He continued his studies at UNC and in 1981 received his master's degree in Pharmacy Administration. In 1999, he entered Law School at

North Carolina Central University North Carolina Central University (NCCU or NC Central) is a public historically black university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by James E. Shepard in affiliation with the Chautauqua movement in 1909, it was supported by private funds from ...

. He received his J.D. degree in 2003. After law school, Gurley opened the Law practice of Gurley & Cookson in

Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...

, although he was not active in practicing law.

Wake County politics

Gurley began his political career in Raleigh in 2002 when he was elected at-large to the

. Gurley was re-elected in 2006, and 2010 respectively.

2012 run for lieutenant governor

In March 2011, Gurley announced via

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

that he filed organizational papers to run for

. In September 2011, Gurley's candidacy was endorsed by former Lieutenant Governor

James Carson Gardner James Carson Gardner (born April 8, 1933) is an American businessman and politician who served as a U.S. Representative (1967–1969) and as the 30th Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina (1989–1993). Early life Gardner was born in Rocky Mo ...

, stating that he liked the idea that Gurley, a pharmacy owner, had a background in business. Shortly thereafter, Gurley was also endorsed by Wake County Sheriff Donnie Harrison.

Primary Results

Under state law, if no candidate receives 40 percent of the vote in the primary, the second-place candidate can request a second primary (runoff). Gurley declared that he would ask for such a runoff after finishing second in the unofficial May 8 primary election results.Tony Gurley statement
Gurley was defeated by Dan Forest on July 17.

References

External links

Campaign website.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gurley, Tom Businesspeople from North Carolina County commissioners in North Carolina 1956 births Living people People from McDowell County, North Carolina North Carolina Central University alumni University of North Carolina alumni North Carolina lawyers