Les Merritt

Leslie ("Les") Merritt is a Republican politician from the U.S. state of North Carolina and a former North Carolina State Auditor, a position to which he was elected in 2004. Merritt was defeated by Democrat Beth Wood in the 2008 election as part of a Democratic sweep. Wood succeeded Merritt in January 2009. Shortly thereafter, Merritt joined with former FBI Agent Frank Perry to form the Foundation for Ethics in Public Service. Perry had also served as the lead investigator at the Auditor's Office. Merritt was executive director of the foundation from 2009 through 2011. In 2013 he was appointed to the state Ethics Commission, but had to resign after almost ten months in office over a perceived conflict regarding his status as a state contractor. In February 2012, Merritt joined the board of directors of the NC Alliance for Public Charter Schools.

Merritt was born and raised in rural Sampson County. He and his wife now live in the eastern Wake County town of Zebulon. After earning degrees in economics and accounting from North Carolina State University and becoming a Certified Public Accountant, Merritt served as the president of the Zebulon Lions and Rotary clubs, and of the Zebulon Elementary School PTA. Merritt was elected to the Wake County Board of Commissioners in 1994, a post he held until 1998. Professionally, he served as president of Merritt, Petway, Mills & Hockaday, an accounting & auditing firm with offices in Zebulon and Raleigh, prior to being elected State Auditor. In 2000, he challenged incumbent Democratic State Auditor Ralph Campbell and was narrowly defeated. In a 2004 rematch against Campbell, Merritt narrowly defeated the three-term incumbent, campaigning on a platform of fiscal conservatism. During his campaign, Merritt touted his record on the Wake County Board of Commissioners. He was one of only three Republicans on the majority-Democratic North Carolina Council of State from January 2005 through January 2009. Merritt was the first Certified Public Accountant to serve as State Auditor of North Carolina.

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