Steve Luking

Steve Luking was born in Dayton, Ohio. He earned a bachelor's degree from Wright State University in 1980 and an M.D. from the University of Cincinnati in 1984. He also graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1987. His career experience includes working as a physician. Luking co-founded Reidsville Family Medicine in 1993. He served as chief of staff and chairperson of the hospital board at Annie Penn Hospital. He became a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians in 1984.[1]

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am a recently retired family physician. I spent the past 35 years living and practicing in two rural NC communities (Roxboro for four years, Reidsville for 31 years). I also served as Chief of Staff for Annie Penn Hospital in Reidsville and as Chairperson of our Hospital Board.

In Roxboro, I met and married Sara, now a retired public school teacher. We raised two children in Reidsville, where they attended public schools. Melinda, who currently is a schoolteacher in Asheville, recently had our first grandchild. Forrest owns a successful business as a charter fisherman out of Homer, Alaska.

I never imagined entering politics, but circumstances over the past decade have really left me no choice. For over a decade I fought hard against my opponent, Phil Berger, for his unforgivable stance of rejection of Medicaid expansion to my working poor patients (and half a million others, most of whom were working women). Berger and other legislators finally came to their senses, but not before thousands of North Carolinians died prematurely, billions of dollars of North Carolina tax revenue were forfeited elsewhere, and we lost four times as many rural hospitals to closure than the states who expanded access early.

I have always been a huge supporter of public education, and now I see the very same harmful extreme ideology damaging the quality and accessibility of public education for our school kids. Phil Berger deserves a staunch opponent, and that's me.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

A quality public education is a fundamental constitutional right and a necessity for our school children across the state. Our state legislature is intentionally failing to provide this. From 2002 to 2020, only one state in the nation saw an actual decline in inflation adjusted dollars spent per public student--North Carolina. In 2023, we were 50th in the nation in public school investment as a fraction of our GDP! State budgets are indeed a statement of moral priorities, and we are de-prioritizing our school kids. My opponent clearly would prefer to cut corporate taxes and give private school vouchers and tax breaks to high income citizens rather than to adequately fund public schools and pay teachers a living wage. We must fight this.The abject failure of our legislature to extend Medicaid coverage to over half a million North Carolinians for over a decade, while damaging the health infrastructure of our rural and urban areas, demonstrates we need a change--and fast. We need more science-based, compassionate medical professionals who can represent the needs of the average citizen, and advocate for a more equitable and balanced approach to healthcare delivery. I do not trust the current legislature to objectively and scientifically make good decisions on behalf of women, or to successfully advocate for common sense issues like relief of medical debt, or to fight the insurance companies who provide outsized donations to our legislators each election cycle. We need to restore legislative integrity. To me, integrity in governance means making good decisions on behalf of and in consultation with your constituents. And making certain those decisions are free of unethical influence--where matters are decided upon merits alone and what it means to the citizens of your district. My opponent has been too swayed by partisan political ideology and campaign contributions, and consistently is making bad decisions which harm middle class and rural North Carolinians (like trying to ram through a casino locally while delaying Medicaid expansion) and is willing to gerrymander his district further when he takes a stance against the wishes of a local community (like last years' Summerfield debacle).

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I learned long ago that, as a rural family physician, I can work hard to care for each of my patients, but if the state government undercuts the health and education and prosperity of my rural community, my efforts are diminished. A strong public education system is a fundamental right of our citizens and will elevate all communities--and improve our ability to recruit quality jobs. Expansion of healthcare access should be a goal for all and benefits our state--improving both the quality of life of our residents and, once again, our ability to recruit and retain quality industries. Return to integrity and good governance will improve prosperity for all and will reduce the corruptive influence of excess money in the legislative process.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

An elected official should be open-minded, honest, resistant to unethical influence, and always approachable. He or she should be guided by a core ethical philosophy which includes compassion and integrity, and the ability to make difficult decisions for the betterment of the community. The elected official should keep in mind that the rich and powerful always have a better seat at the legislative table. He or she should work hard to understand and advocate for the perspective of average and lower income citizens in the legislative process.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

I remember my mom picking me up from kindergarten, and she was crying. I asked her why. She told me that President Kennedy had just been shot. I remember watching the swirl of events on the old black and white TV later that day at home. I had just turned five years old.