Check out our Areas of Concern/Action Page
James A. Harrell 
James Andrew “Jim” Harrell, III is a lobbyist with Bode & Harrell, LLP in Raleigh. He served three terms as a Democratic member of the North Carolina General Assembly representing the state’s ninetieth House district, including constituents in Alleghany and Surry counties. In 2014 he was named the 8th most powerful active lobbyist in the state legislature. He has represented RELANC since its inception in 2011.
Harrell, an Eagle Scout and native of Elkin, NC, is a graduate of Hampden-Sydney College and the Emory University School of Law. While a law student, Harrell worked for the District Attorney’s office in Fulton County, Georgia. He also served as a law clerk for North Carolina Supreme Court justice Franklin Freeman.
Harrell was elected to the NC House in 2002 and re-elected in 2004. He was elected to a third term with over 60 percent of the vote. During his final term, the 2007-2008 session, Harrell was chairman of both the House committees on Ways and Means and on Pensions and Retirement. He served as chairman of the Environment and Natural Resources committee in his second term and of Judiciary Committee II in the second half of his first term. Harrell also chaired or co-chaired select committees on Economic Development and on the rural economy in 2006.
He currently serves as a board member for the North Carolina Legislative Black Caucus Foundation and serves on the board of visitors for Appalachian State University. He is a past board member of the Old Hickory Council of the Boy Scouts of America, and a member and Sunday school teacher for White Memorial Presbyterian Church in Raleigh.