Photo: North Carolina General Assembly
North Carolina State Representative Jerry Carter passed away early Tuesday morning (August 3), according to the News & Observer. He was 66 years old.
Aaron Shelton, an assistant pastor at Reidsville Baptist Church, confirmed that Rep. Carter, a founder and senior pastor at the church, died at Duke Hospital in Durham following complications from a surgery he had last week.
Carter's wife, Brenda Bruton Carter, said last month that he had been diagnosed with idiopathic myointimal hyperplasia of mesentric veins, a rare gastrointestinal disorder that often appears similar to inflammatory bowel disease, the newspaper reports. Shelton said Carter underwent surgery to treat the illness.
The Republican was elected in 2018 to represent District 65, including most of Rockingham County, and won reelection during his 2020 campaign. In addition to his duties as a state representative, he was the chairman of the House Families, Children and Aging Policy Committee.
The Rockingham County Sheriff's Office offered their condolences on Tuesday following Carter's death.
"Our thoughts & prayers go out to the family, friends & colleagues of NC Representative Jerry Carter, who passed away this morning," the sheriff's office said in a tweet. "Jerry served our community for years as our State Representative, Pastor of Reidsville Baptist Church & Chaplain for the NCSHP."
At this time, it is unclear who Rockingham County Republicans will choose to serve the remainder of Carter's two-year term.