The speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives is the presiding officer of one of the houses of the North Carolina General Assembly. The speaker is elected by the members of the house when they first convene for their regular session, which is currently in January of each odd-numbered year. Perhaps the most important duty of the speaker is to appoint members and chairs of the various standing committees of the House.

History of the office

The office evolved from the office of Speaker of the lower house of the legislature in the Province of Carolina, called the House of Burgesses. Since the House was the only elected body in the colony, the Speaker was often seen as the leading voice of the people. In 1776, North Carolina created its first constitution, which established a Senate and a House of Commons, both of which were elected by voters. In the 1868 North Carolina Constitution, the name of the house was changed to "House of Representatives." For most of the twentieth century, the office's power was limited, because Speakers usually only served for a single legislative session. This changed with Speakers Carl J. Stewart, Jr. (1977–1980), Liston B. Ramsey (1981–1988) and James B. Black (1999–2006). Democrats held the speaker's chair continuously from 1899 until 1994, when Republicans gained a majority and elected Harold J. Brubaker in January 1995. In the 2003–2004 session, a unique power-sharing arrangement was created by Democrats and a handful of Republicans. This resulted in the first election of two speakers simultaneously, Jim Black (Democrat) and Richard T. Morgan (Republican). The two held roughly equal power and took turns presiding over the House. After Democrats won a majority in the 2004 election, this arrangement was ended, but Morgan again supported Black and was named Speaker Pro Tempore.

Powers and duties

The speaker has the power to appoint some members of state boards.

List of speakers

Province of Carolina House of Burgesses

The following were speakers of the House of Burgesses of the Province of Carolina:

Province of North Carolina House of Burgesses

The following were speakers of the House of Burgesses of the Province of North Carolina:

House of Commons

The following members were elected speakers of the House of Commons in the state of North Carolina:

House of Representatives

The following members were elected speaker of the House of Representatives:

House notes