Who is running for NC Court of Appeals Judge, Seat 3 (open seat) in 2026?

District Court Judge, Wake County (District 10)

Christine Walczyk has been a Wake County district court judge since Governor Mike Easley appointed her in 2007, and she has served as lead judge of the county's family court and now its general civil court⁴²⁵. Before the bench she co-owned the Raleigh firm Grafstein and Walczyk for more than a decade⁴⁵. She won the March 2026 Democratic primary with 62.4 percent and faces Republican Superior Court Judge Craig Collins for an open Court of Appeals seat on November 3, 2026 in this partisan race⁴³¹.

• District Court Judge, Wake County (10th Judicial District, seat 10C-2), since 2007; formerly lead family court judge and currently lead general civil court judge³²⁵
• Managing member, Grafstein and Walczyk, PLLC, Raleigh, practicing business, criminal and juvenile law for more than a decade⁴²
• B.S. in finance, magna cum laude, Boston College Carroll School of Management, 1992; J.D., University of North Carolina School of Law, 1995; admitted to the bar September 8, 1995²³
• Appointed to the Wake County district court by Governor Mike Easley in 2007 after the local bar's nomination vote, filling the seat vacated when Judge Donna Stroud was elected to the Court of Appeals; she has since been reelected, and her current district court term runs through 2028⁴³. She won the March 3, 2026 Democratic primary for Court of Appeals Seat 3 over James Whalen with 62.35 percent⁴⁶.

Superior Court Judge, Gaston County

Craig Collins is a Gaston County Superior Court judge who was elected to that court without opposition in 2024 after nine years as a district court judge, nine years as a Gaston County assistant district attorney and nine years in private practice in Gastonia⁵²⁶. Governor Pat McCrory first appointed him to the district court in February 2016⁴. He faces Democrat Christine Walczyk for an open Court of Appeals seat on November 3, 2026 in this partisan race¹³.

• Superior Court Judge, Gaston County (Superior Court District 38), since his 2024 election⁵²
• District Court Judge, Judicial District 27A (Gaston County), February 2016 to 2024⁴⁶
• Owner, Law Office of Craig Collins, Gastonia, for nine years; assistant district attorney, Gaston County, for nine years⁶⁴
• B.A., University of Pittsburgh, 1994; J.D., Villanova University School of Law, 1997; admitted to the bar in 1997²⁶
• Appointed to the district court by Governor Pat McCrory on February 16, 2016 to fill the vacancy created by the death of Chief District Court Judge Ralph Gingles Jr., and later elected to that seat⁴⁵. Elected to the Superior Court without opposition in November 2024⁵. The 2026 Republican primary for Court of Appeals Seat 3 was canceled and he advanced to the general election³⁷.