1974Final resultsIncumbent defeated
1974 election for North Carolina House District 36
North Carolina House of Representatives · North Carolina
8 seats: Jo Graham Foster (D), Craig Lawing (D), Marilyn R. Bissell (R), Roy Spoon (R), Laurence A. Cobb (R), Parks Helms (D), Carolyn Mathis (R), Ben Tison (D) won.
8 seatsJo Graham FosterDemocrat · winner · incumbent
8.0%31,592
Craig LawingDemocrat · winner · incumbent
7.9%31,236
Marilyn R. BissellRepublican · winner · incumbent
7.9%31,102
Roy SpoonRepublican · winner · incumbent
7.4%28,974
Laurence A. CobbRepublican · winner · incumbent
7.2%28,158
Parks HelmsDemocrat · winner
7.0%27,491
Carolyn MathisRepublican · winner · incumbent
7.0%27,342
Ben TisonDemocrat · winner · incumbent
6.9%27,142
Ruth M. EasterlingDemocrat
6.5%25,589
Gus EconomosDemocrat
6.0%23,667
David D. JordanRepublican · incumbent
5.9%23,106
Hoke S. GriffinDemocrat
5.5%21,759
Evelyn H. RenfroeDemocrat
5.2%20,473
Bob HarkeyRepublican
4.1%16,077
Steve M. BingmanRepublican
3.8%14,895
Sam C. CesenaRepublican
3.7%14,510
393,113 votes
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1974
Races before and after
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The candidates
Jo Graham Foster (D)Craig Lawing (D)Marilyn R. Bissell (R)Roy Spoon (R)Laurence A. Cobb (R)Parks Helms (D)Carolyn Mathis (R)Ben Tison (D)Ruth M. Easterling (D)Gus Economos (D)David D. Jordan (R)Hoke S. Griffin (D)Evelyn H. Renfroe (D)
Also on the ballot: Bob Harkey (Republican), 4.1%; Steve M. Bingman (Republican), 3.8%; Sam C. Cesena (Republican), 3.7%