Source: Editorial
Jonathan Almond is a first-term Republican state representative from Concord who has quickly established a record of aligning himself with some of the North Carolina Republican Party’s most extreme policies and political figures. Elected in 2024 to represent House District 73 in Cabarrus County, Almond has used his first term to support legislation weakening environmental protections, expanding gun access, advancing restrictive immigration policies, and changing the state’s energy policy in ways that have increased costs for consumers across the state.
Almond’s political record is consistent with his public associations: he has closely aligned himself with prominent conservative figures including former Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, supporting him even after the infamous CNN report detailing Robinson’s vulgar and antisemitic online comments. Almond has also promoted national figures such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., J.D. Vance and Elon Musk.
One of Almond’s most controversial positions involves ivermectin, the anti-parasitic drug that became a political flashpoint during the COVID-19 pandemic after being promoted by Donald Trump and other vaccine skeptics as a treatment for the virus.
Almond proudly sponsored legislation that would have allowed ivermectin to be dispensed without a prescription and shielded pharmacists who provided the drug from civil and criminal liability. The legislation sought to remove barriers to access to a drug that the FDA has not approved for treating or preventing COVID-19.
Almond also voted for the 2025 congressional redistricting map that redrew North Carolina’s only competitive congressional district after President Donald Trump publicly pushed Republican lawmakers to redraw the state’s congressional map.
The new map reshaped North Carolina’s 1st Congressional District to give Donald Trump and the GOP another seat in Congress, diluting the voting power of Black voters in the historic Black Belt to do so.
Almond has also supported legislation that rolled back Duke Energy’s carbon-emissions reduction requirements and allowed the utility to recover additional power-purchasing costs from customers. The legislation could shift approximately $87 million in costs onto residential ratepayers, even as Duke Energy continues to request rate hikes despite its nearly $5 billion in profits reported last year.
The bill is particularly notable because it began as legislation addressing storm recovery and rebuilding before Republican lawmakers amended it to include the energy provisions. Almond was absent for the original House vote but later voted to override Gov. Josh Stein’s veto.
Stein opposed the legislation in part because of the costs it could impose on ratepayers.
Additionally, Almond was a cosponsor and supporter of House Bill 402, legislation that changed North Carolina’s environmental regulations in ways opponents argued would make it easier for corporations to pollute the state’s waterways. Rather than strengthening protections for clean water, Almond cosponsored legislation that effectively halted environmental rulemaking, such as putting limits on PFAS in water.
Almond has also repeatedly supported efforts to loosen North Carolina’s gun laws. He was a cosponsor and voted for House Bill 193, legislation that made it easier for people to carry concealed firearms in schools and churches. He also cosponsored House Bill 5, a bill that would allow anyone over the age of 18 in North Carolina to conceal-carry a handgun without a permit.
Almond also cosponsored and voted for House Bill 92, legislation that would allow the state to invest money from North Carolina’s pension fund in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
The proposal would expose public retirement funds to an industry that is known to be volatile, poorly regulated, and heavy on energy usage.
For a first-term legislator, Almond has already accumulated a substantial record — and that record consistently puts him on the side of extreme, Trump-aligned Republicans, favoring corporate interests over consumers and environmental protections.
Almond is set to face off against Democratic candidate Thomas Monks in November. Monks was raised in North Carolina and has had a career spanning marketing, education, and partnership development. Monks is campaigning on inclusive economic growth, equitable access to healthcare and education, environmental sustainability, and restoring transparency and trust in public institutions.
