Last week, the State House and Senate passed redistricting plans for the US House and the state’s legislative districts. Garnering the most attention, the new congressional map departs from the 7-7 maps ordered by last year’s state Supreme Court and instead features 10 districts favoring Republicans, 3 seats favoring Democrats and 1 competitive district. The tossup district, held by U.S. Rep. and former State Senator Don Davis, encompasses the Northeastern part of the state and while it favors Democrats at the moment, it is in a part of the state trending Republican. This week, we’re traveling to Green County, home county of Don Davis, the congressman who is about to be in one of the most competitive congressional races in the country.
Established in 1791, Greene was originally named Glasgow County after James Glasgow, the Secretary of State during the colonial era. In 1799, James Glasgow was charged with making fraudulent land grants. Following Glasgow’s indictment, residents voted to change the name and chose Greene to honor Revolutionary War General Nathanael Greene.
Rumored to be considered at one point for the state’s capital city, Snow Hill, Davis’ hometown and the county seat, was formed in 1828 and named for the white sandy banks of the Contentnea Creek. Contentnea Creek was a major trading depot between Wilson and New Bern. Since its establishment, agriculture and manufacturing have driven Greene’s economy. The county ranks 19th in the state for most farmland, boasting more than 1100 farms and 91,000 acres.
Greene County is also said to have the smallest town to ever field a professional baseball team. The minor league team, the Snow Hill Billies, played from 1937 to 1942 and won the league pennant in 1937. The team launched the careers of several players who went on the play in the major leagues, as well as Walter Raab, who coached UNC’s baseball team for 31 years.
The county solidly favored Democrats until 1968 when the county broke and supported George Wallace. The county then went for Nixon and oscillated between parties until 1992, which was the last time the county went for a Democrat. Since then, the county has grown in its GOP support. In 2012, Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney won the county by nearly 8 points. In 2020, Trump carried the county by more than 11 points. In 2022, U.S. Senator Ted Budd won the county by almost 19 points.