District Court Judge, District 26, Seat 16 (Mecklenburg County)

Matt Newton has been a Mecklenburg County district court judge since January 2023, hearing domestic violence, criminal and family law cases²³. He was previously managing partner of the Charlotte law firm Newton and Arroyo, chaired the Mecklenburg County Democratic Party from 2015 to 2017, and served two terms on the Charlotte City Council representing District 5 after his first election in 2017²³. He is unopposed on the November 2026 ballot in this partisan race¹.

• District Court Judge, 26th Judicial District, since January 1, 2023; has sat in domestic violence, criminal and family law courts²³
• Attorney and managing partner, Newton and Arroyo, PLLC; general counsel and board member of National Action Network-Charlotte; committee member of the Charlotte chapter of the ACLU²
• Charlotte City Council member, District 5, first elected 2017 and served two terms; chair of the Mecklenburg County Democratic Party, 2015 to 2017²³
• Bachelor's degree, University of North Carolina Wilmington; J.D., Thomas Jefferson School of Law²
• Elected without opposition on November 8, 2022, and took office January 1, 2023². Both 2026 primaries were canceled and he is unopposed in November²¹.