Ralph Campbell Jr. (December 7, 1946 – January 11, 2011) was an American politician and auditor who served as the North Carolina State Auditor from 1993 to 2005. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American to hold statewide elected executive office in North Carolina. Campbell was born in Raleigh, North Carolina, and he attended St. Augustine's College. He graduated with a degree in business administration in 1968, and served in the United States Army Reserve from 1971 until 1977. After leaving the reserve, he worked various government jobs before being elected to the Raleigh City Council in 1985.
In 1992, Campbell ran for North Carolina State Auditor and was elected, defeating Republican Vernon Abernethy. Taking office in January 1993, he equipped office staff with desktop computers and field auditors with laptop computers during his first term and pushed for the implementation of an entirely digital auditing system. Campbell conducted several high-profile audits during his tenure, occasionally annoying government workers and other Democrats. Re-elected in 1996 and 2000, he lost a bid for a fourth term to Republican Les Merritt. Leaving office in 2005, Campbell worked as a consultant and served as treasurer of the North Carolina Democratic Party. Campbell was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2010, and he died the following year.
Early life
Ralph Campbell Jr. was born on December 7, 1946, in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States to Ralph Campbell Sr. and June Kay Campbell. Both of his parents were civil rights activists. His maternal grandmother, Willie Otey Kay, was a prominent dressmaker in Raleigh. Ralph Jr. grew up with two brothers, Bill (who would later serve as Mayor of Atlanta) and Eddie, and one sister, Mildred. In 1960, the elder Campbells requested that the Raleigh School Board admit Ralph Jr., Mildred, and Bill to attend all-white schools. The board allowed Bill to be transferred—and thus become the first black student to attend an all-white public school in the city—but denied the applications for Ralph Jr. and Mildred, citing overcrowding at the junior high school to which they sought admission.
Campbell accompanied his father and sister to the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. After graduating from John W. Ligon High School in 1964, he attended St. Augustine's College, receiving a degree in business administration in 1968. He later took graduate-level business courses at North Carolina Central University.
Early career
From 1971 until 1977, Campbell served in the United States Army Reserve. After leaving the reserve, he worked as a field auditor for the North Carolina Department of Revenue, and from 1986 to 1990 as a plan auditor for the State Health Benefits Office. In 1990, Campbell took an administrative job in the North Carolina Department of Insurance, holding the job until 1992. In 1985, Campbell was elected to the Raleigh City Council, assuming office on December 3. He was re-elected in 1987, 1989, and 1991. In the city council, he chaired the Law and Finance Committee and Intergovernmental Committee from 1985 to 1989 and served as mayor pro tempore in his final full term from 1989 to 1991. He resigned from the council effective January 1, 1993.
North Carolina State Auditor
Election and first term
Campbell decided to run for the office of North Carolina State Auditor in 1992, declaring his candidacy in January. Facing two other candidates in the Democratic Party's primary election, he took a leave of absence from his job in the Department of Insurance and travelled across the state to hold meetings and rallies. He won the May 5 primary, securing the Democratic nomination with 48 percent of the vote, and faced Republican Vernon Abernethy in the general election. Campbell pledged that if he was elected he would create an advisory council for the office and establish a technical assistance program to educate officials in other state agencies on cost-controlling methods. Abernethy emphasized his Certified Public Accountant status and criticized Campbell for lacking accounting experience. Campbell won the general election on November 3, saying, "How sweet it is to be standing with my fellow North Carolinians on the edge of tomorrow [...] We have chosen hope over fear." His victory made him the first black person ever elected to a statewide executive office in North Carolina.