Jennifer Balkcom

Jennifer Balkcom was born in Henderson County, North Carolina; according to her campaign website, she is an eighth-generation Western North Carolinian who grew up on her family's apple farm.[2][3] She graduated from East Henderson High School and earned an associate degree from Blue Ridge Community College (business administration, banking and finance, per her campaign website) in 2016.[2][3]

According to her campaign website, Balkcom began a career in banking and finance in 1998 and is now a mortgage loan officer and small business owner; she has served as treasurer of the Mortgage Bankers Association of Western North Carolina.[2][3] She has also served as vice president of the Hendersonville Women's Club and the Hendersonville Lions Club, and on the boards of the Henderson County Education Foundation, the AdventHealth Foundation and the Henderson County Planning Board.[2]

Balkcom was elected to the North Carolina House of Representatives in 2022, representing District 117, and was assigned to the Agriculture, Banking, House Finance, Local Government (Land Use, Planning and Development), and State Government committees in the 2023-2024 session.[2] WLOS reported that in the General Assembly she chairs the Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Natural and Economic Resources and the Insurance Committee, and is vice chair of the Appropriations Committee and the House Select Committee on Helene Recovery.[4] She became the Republican nominee on August 10, 2026, when the district's Republican Executive Committee unanimously chose her from six candidates after Rep. Chuck Edwards withdrew from the race.[4][5] According to her campaign website, she lives in Hendersonville with her family.[3] During the campaign, she emphasized affordability, community safety, support for farmers and Hurricane Helene recovery.[2][3][4] She received 41.3% of the vote to Jamie Ager's 57.1%, according to unofficial results reported by NBC News.[1]