Currituck Commissioners appoint Steve Hedrick to District 5 vacancy

By Outer Banks Voice on August 24, 2026

Steve Hedrick taking the Oath of Office, accompanied by his wife Connie. (Currituck County photo)

Following the recommendation of the county’s Republican Party, the Currituck Commissioners appointed Steve Hedrick to fill the vacant District 5 seat at a special meeting on Aug. 24.

The vacancy was created by the death of Commissioner Owen Etheridge in June. And while this appointment is until the expiration of Etheridge’s term and the seating of the winner of the District 5 race this fall, Hedrick is seeking that seat on the November ballot where he faces Democrat JeKeith Cowell Sr. Hedrick defeated Charles Gray in the March Republican primary contest for the District 5 seat.

The Currituck Republican Party told the Voice that it had received three applications to fill the current board vacancy. A Moyock resident, Hedrick is a retired U.S. Navy veteran who moved to Currituck County after more than two decades in the military.

Previously, the District 5 seat on the Currituck Board of Commissioners was filled by Troy Breathwaite while Etheridge was on a medical leave of absence. Breathwaite served as a temporary replacement from November 3, 2025, until Etheridge’s passing.