Ralph Campbell

Ralph A. Campbell, Jr. (December 7, 1946 – January 11, 2011) was for three terms the State Auditor of North Carolina. A Democrat, Campbell was the first African-American to hold a state-wide elected executive office in North Carolina.

Campbell was a native of Raleigh, North Carolina and an alumnus of St. Augustine's College, holding a degree in business administration. His younger brother is former Atlanta, Georgia Mayor Bill Campbell. He served in the United States Army Reserve from 1971 to 1977. From 1977 to 1986, he worked as a field auditor for the North Carolina Department of Revenue, and from 1986 to 1990, as a plan auditor for the State Health Benefits Office. Between 1990 and 1992, Campbell worked in the administration of the North Carolina Department of Insurance.

Campbell was first elected to Raleigh City Council in 1985 and was re-elected three additional times, serving as mayor pro tem in his final term, from 1989 to 1991. In 1992, he ran for the office of State Auditor and became the first African-American on the North Carolina Council of State. Campbell was re-elected to the same office in 1996 and 2000.

Campbell sought a fourth term in the 2004 Council of State elections, but was narrowly defeated by Les Merritt. He died in 2011 of lung cancer.