Senator Norman Sanderson Contact information

Norman Wesley Sanderson Jr., born on July 7, 1951, is a Republican member of the North Carolina General Assembly. He represents the state’s first Senate district, which includes Carteret, Craven, and Pamlico counties. He assumed office on January 1, 2023, and his current term ends on January 1, 2025. Sanderson is running for re-election to the North Carolina State Senate to represent District 2. He is on the ballot in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Sanderson grew up on a small family farm in Columbus County, NC. His father had him out in the fields working at just five years old. His six siblings and he learned the value of a strong work ethic raising tobacco and hogs. He had his first “official” job at the age of 17 driving their tobacco truck from the warehouse to the packing facility. He graduated from West Columbus High School and attended North Carolina State University, focusing on Agricultural Education. He later went back to college as an adult and earned a BA in Christian Education from Logos Christian College & Graduate Schools.

From his work on the farm to running a dredge on the creeks around Pamlico County, from his work as a law enforcement officer and drug enforcement agent for the Pamlico County Sherriff’s Office to becoming the principal of a Christian school after earning a Christian Education degree and then owning a successful childcare facility in Havelock, NC that positively impacted the lives of children and families for over 20 years, the Lord has blessed him with a breadth of experience that has served him well in the NC Senate for the past nine years.

In 2010, he was elected by the voters of North Carolina House District 3 (Craven and Pamlico Counties) to serve in the NC House of Representatives, defeating a 4-term Democrat incumbent with an impressive 64% of the vote. In 2012, he was asked to run for the NC Senate seat being vacated by retiring Senator Jean Preston. Using hard work and a strong grassroots campaign, he won a three-way Republican primary with 51% of the vote and the general election with a 63% majority.

He is a Christian, a Conservative, and a Republican - in that order. He believes in the sanctity of human life and is pleased to have received an endorsement from NC Right to Life. He strongly believes in our 2nd Amendment rights and is pleased to have received an endorsement from the NRA. He also firmly believes that marriage should be between one man and one woman and worked for the passage of NC’s Defence of Marriage Act.

He has had the pleasure of serving his community as past president of Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship America Crystal Coast Chapter, First Vice Chair of NC’s Third Congressional District, Secretary of the Craven County Republican Men’s Club, member of Pamlico County Committee of 100, member of the Pamlico County Chamber of Commerce and Havelock Chamber of Commerce, and member of Oriental Rotary Club. He and his wife Linda have been married for 49 years, and they are the proud parents of daughter Jennifer and husband Frankie Alcock and son Lee Sanderson and wife Stephanie.