to be appointed by the governor to fill the vacancy. In the general election, Keever won a two-year term with 56% of the vote. Keever served on the following committees: Agriculture, Appropriations, Appropriations Subcommittee on Justice and Public Safety, Environment, Government, and State Personnel. The North Carolina League of Conservation Voters awarded Keever the 2012 Rising Star award for her work in the legislature. 2012 U.S. House campaign Keever ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in North Carolina's 10th congressional district in 2012. She won the Democratic primary in May 2012 with nearly 57.8% of the vote over Asheville Mayor Terry Bellamy (26.5%) and local Timothy Murphy (15.6%). Keever lost the general election to incumbent Patrick McHenry. State party leadership Keever was elected first vice-chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party in 2013. After incumbent chair Randy Voller declined to run for a second term, Keever was elected party chair in 2015. She declined to run for a second two-year term and was succeeded by Wayne Goodwin. State Senate Campaign In March 2019, Keever announced her intention to seek the Democratic Party's nomination to run against incumbent Republican Chuck Edwards in the 48th district of the North Carolina Senate in the 2020 elections. References External links Patsy Keever for NC Senate official campaign website Patsy Keever at the North Carolina General Assembly website American educators County commissioners in North Carolina Duke University alumni 1947 births Women state legislators in North Carolina Democratic Party members of the North Carolina House of Representatives Living people North Carolina Democratic Party chairs 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians