Ruth Samuelson

American politician from North Carolina (1959–2017

Representative

Ruth Samuelson

Member of the North Carolina House of Representatives
from the 104th district
In office
January 1, 2007 – January 1, 2015
Preceded by| Ed McMahan
Succeeded by| Dan Bishop
Member of the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners
from the 5th district
In office
2000–2004
Preceded by| Tom Cox[1]
Succeeded by| Dan Bishop[2]
Personal details
Born|

Ruth Culbertson

(1959-11-04)November 4, 1959
Charleston, South Carolina
Died| January 23, 2017(2017-01-23) (aged 57)
Charlotte, North Carolina
Political party| Republican
Spouse| Ken Samuelson[3]
Children| Three sons, one daughter[3]
Alma mater| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill[3]

Ruth Culbertson Samuelson (November 4, 1959 – January 23, 2017) was a Republican member of the North Carolina General Assembly, representing the 104th district in the North Carolina House of Representatives from 2007 to 2015.[4][5] From 2000 to 2004, Samuelson served as a member of the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners, representing the Fifth District. In 2004, she ran for an At-Large seat on the Board of Commissioners, but lost in a tight general election race.[6]

In November 2006, Samuelson was elected to the North Carolina House succeeding five-term incumbent Ed McMahan. Samuelson was elected with 67% of the vote in the election, beating Democrat Paula McSwain.[7]

She announced on October 15, 2013, that she would not seek re-election for a fifth term and would leave office at the end of her term, after the 2014 elections.[8]

Samuelson revealed in June 2016 that she had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer.[9] Later that year she entered hospice care at home.[10]

Samuelson died on January 23, 2017, at the age of 57.[9] A hiking trail in Mecklenburg County has been named in Samuelson's honor.[10]

## Electoral history

[edit]

### 2012

[edit]

North Carolina House of Representatives 104th district general election, 2012[11] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %

|
|
|

| Republican | Ruth Samuelson (incumbent)  | 31,319  | 100%
Total votes | 31,319  | 100%
| Republican hold

### 2010

[edit]

North Carolina House of Representatives 104th district Republican primary election, 2010[12] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %

|
|
|

| Republican | Ruth Samuelson (incumbent)  | 3,489  | 83.03%
| Republican | Jerry Drye  | 713  | 16.97%
Total votes | 4,202  | 100%
North Carolina House of Representatives 104th district general election, 2010[13] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %

|
|
|

| Republican | Ruth Samuelson (incumbent)  | 20,001  | 74.74%
| Democratic | Frank Deaton  | 6,758  | 25.26%
Total votes | 26,759  | 100%
| Republican hold

### 2008

[edit]

North Carolina House of Representatives 104th district general election, 2008[14] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %

|
|
|

| Republican | Ruth Samuelson (incumbent)  | 29,349  | 100%
Total votes | 29,349  | 100%
| Republican hold

### 2006

[edit]

North Carolina House of Representatives 104th district general election, 2006[15] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %

|
|
|

| Republican | Ruth Samuelson  | 14,668  | 67.03%
| Democratic | Paula McSwain  | 7,215  | 32.97%
Total votes | 21,883  | 100%
| Republican hold

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Our Campaigns - Mecklenburg County Commissioner - District 5 Race - Nov 07, 2000".
2. ^ "Our Campaigns - Mecklenburg County Commissioner - District 5 Race - Nov 05, 2002".
3. ^ a b c Morrill, Jim (17 October 2006). "Fight is on to replace McMahan - in House District 104, Democratic Newcomer Faces Ex-Commissioner". The Charlotte Observer. Charlotte, North Carolina: McClatchy: 2B.
4. ^ "2011-2012 Report for Rep. Ruth Samuelson - NCCPPR". Archived from the original on 15 March 2017. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
5. ^ "Ruth Samuelson, former lawmaker, dies at 56". Retrieved 23 January 2017.
6. ^ "Mecklenburg County North Carolina November 2, 2004 Election Results" (PDF). Charlotte, North Carolina: Mecklenburg County North Carolina Board of Elections. p. 103. Retrieved 12 November 2013.
7. ^ "Mecklenburg County North Carolina 7 November 2006 Election Results" (PDF). Charlotte, North Carolina: Mecklenburg County North Carolina Board of Elections. pp. 130–131. Retrieved 12 November 2013.
8. ^ Morrill, Jim (15 October 2013). "Ruth Samuelson says she won't run for re-election in 2014". Charlotte, North Carolina: The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on 10 November 2013. "Charlotte Republican Rep. Ruth Samuelson, one of North Carolina's highest profile lawmakers and a top contender for House speaker, said Tuesday that she won't run for a fifth term."
9. ^ a b Henderson, Bruce (23 January 2017). "Ruth Samuelson, former lawmaker, dies at 57". The Charlotte Observer. Charlotte, North Carolina: McClatchy.
10. ^ a b "Samuelson, former lawmaker, receives hospice care at home". 13 January 2017. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
11. ^ [1] North Carolina State Board of Elections.
12. ^ [2] North Carolina State Board of Elections.
13. ^ [3] North Carolina State Board of Elections.
14. ^ [4] North Carolina State Board of Elections.
15. ^ [5] North Carolina State Board of Elections.

Political offices

Preceded by

Tom Cox

|  Member of the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners
from the 5th district
2000–2004  | Succeeded by

Dan Bishop

North Carolina House of Representatives
Preceded by

Ed McMahan

|  Member of the North Carolina House of Representatives
from the 104th district
2007–2015  | Succeeded by

Dan Bishop