Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Kim Gourrier Scott will replace her boss.

In a tight battle to see who will succeed retiring local District Attorney Valerie Asbell, that job will fall into the hands of Scott, a current Assistant District Attorney on Asbell’s staff.

Scott used a wide margin of victory in Northampton County during Tuesday’s Primary Election to defeat fellow Democrat Jamal Summey, a Halifax County attorney. The unofficial results show Scott with 8,553 votes (51.46%) within the four counties that comprise the 7^th Prosecutorial District. Summey received 8,068 votes (48.54%).

Scott advances to November’s General Election where she faces no Republican opposition.

“It is an honor and a privilege to be elected by the people, and I promise not to forget that I am here to serve the people,” Scott said on Wednesday in a post on her campaign’s Facebook page.

“I am humbled at the opportunity to serve as your next elected District Attorney,” Scott added in her post. “I am more than grateful and appreciative for the outpouring of support and encouragement throughout this campaign. Please know that acts of kindness can never be too big or too small, and I don’t take them for granted and they don’t go unnoticed.”

Neither candidate managed to use their home counties to gain a big advantage. Scott captured her home county of Herford, but only by 216 votes (1,247 – 1,031). It was even closer on Summey’s home turf in Halifax where he edged out his opponent, 3,765-3,554 (a difference of just 211 votes).

Even the One-Stop early voting was close with Scott holding a 3,974-3,677 advantage.

The difference came in Northampton County where Scott led the balloting by nearly 700 votes (2,264 – 1,582). Scott captured 11 of the county’s 13 precincts, to include two by wide margins: Conway/Milwaukee/Pendleton (237-94) and Lake Gaston (132-43).

Summey held a 202-vote advantage in Bertie County (1,690-1,488). There, each candidate topped the balloting in six of the 12 precincts. Two favored Summey by wide margins (Roxobel: 148-38, and Windsor 1: 199-114). Windsor 2 (80-35) and Colerain 1 (61-31) heavily favored Scott.

Scott has worked as an Assistant District Attorney in Asbell’s office for the past 14 years.

“The information shared from your District Attorney may not always be what people want to hear, but it should always be honest and transparent,” Scott added in her Facebook post. “I owe no favors and have no axes to grind, and I come to the table ready to serve the citizens of this great district in an ethical manner. I promise that cases will never be prosecuted on anything other than the facts and evidence in the case. Race, financial status, political connections, who a defendant’s attorney is, or if they can even afford an attorney, will never be a consideration for how cases will be handled under my administration.”

Asbell announced her retirement on Feb. 28, ending nearly 30 years as a state prosecutor, to include five consecutive election cycles (2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018) where she won the DA’s race. Her current term ends Dec. 31, 2022.