Anna Harris Stein is an American lawyer, public health official, and civic leader. Between 2011 and 2024, she worked as a legal advisor for the

North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS or DHHS) is a large state government agency in the U.S. state of North Carolina, analogous to the United States Department of Health and Human Services. The NCDHHS has more than ...

. On January 1, 2025, as the wife of Governor

Josh Stein Joshua Harold Stein (born September 13, 1966) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the 76th List of governors of North Carolina, governor of North Carolina since 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat ...

, she became the first lady of North Carolina. In April 2025, she was appointed to the North Carolina Joint Reentry Council by the North Carolina Secretary of Adult Correction.

Early life and education

Stein was born in

Elkin, North Carolina Elkin is a town in Surry County, North Carolina, Surry and Wilkes County, North Carolina, Wilkes counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina, along the Yadkin River. Elkin shares its name with the surrounding township of Elkin Township, Surry Co ...

to David Harris and Patty Harris. She lived in Greenville as an infant, while her parents attended

East Carolina University East Carolina University (ECU) is a public university in Greenville, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of universities in North Carolina by enrollment, fourth largest university in North Carolina and the only one in the state with s ...

, and then moved to

Winston-Salem Winston-Salem is a city in Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the fifth-most populous city in North Carolina and the 91st-most populous city in the Uni ...

when she was seven years old. Stein graduated from

Richard J. Reynolds High School Richard J. Reynolds High School now the Richard J. Reynolds Magnet School for the Visual and Performing Arts (often simply R. J. Reynolds High School or Reynolds) is a high school in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools located in Winston-S ...

in Winston-Salem. She earned a bachelor's degree in psychology and a law degree from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...

. She later went back to Chapel Hill to earn a master's degree in public health.

Career and public life

After graduating from law school, Stein clerked on the

North Carolina Court of Appeals The North Carolina Court of Appeals (in case citation, N.C. Ct. App.) is the only intermediate appellate court in the state of North Carolina. It is composed of fifteen members who sit in rotating panels of three. The Court of Appeals was create ...

for Judge Joe John. She later clerked for Judge Robin E. Hudson on the court and joined Hudson in private practice. Stein began working as legal specialist with the North Carolina Division of Public Health's Chronic Disease and Injury Section, a division within the

, in 2011. The division she advises is focused on tobacco-free living, health eating, active living and injury prevention policies. From 2012 to 2014, she worked on the Community Transformation Grant Project. She later served on the Injury and Violence Prevention Branch's opioid overdose prevention team. In October 2023, Stein switched to a part-time role within the department, focusing on health care toolkits for jails and detention centers. In August 2024, North Carolina lieutenant governor Mark Robinson alleged that Stein was "deeply embedded" in the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, which was investigating a nonprofit run by Robinson's wife, Second Lady

Yolanda Hill Robinson Yolanda Dechelle Hill Robinson (born 1968) is an American accountant and non-profit executive. As the wife of Former Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson, she served as the Second Lady of North Carolina from 2021 to 2025 and was the first African-Am ...

, for mismanaging funds provided by the

Child and Adult Care Food Program The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is a type of United States federal assistance provided by the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to states in order to provide a daily subsidized f ...

. Robinson falsely claimed that Stein, whose husband,

, was running against Robinson as the Democratic nominee in the 2024 North Carolina gubernatorial election, was targeting him because of the election. A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services confirmed that Stein was not involved in any of the investigations against the Robinson's business. On January 1, 2025, Stein's husband was sworn in as the

governor of North Carolina The governor of North Carolina is the head of government of the United States, U.S. state of North Carolina. Seventy-five people have held the office since the first state governor, Richard Caswell, took office in 1777. The governor serves a ...

, making her the first lady of North Carolina. Her husband is the state's first Jewish governor. She held the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' oath of office An oath of office is an oath or affirmation a person takes before assuming the duties of an office, usually a position in government or within a religious body, although such oaths are sometimes required of officers of other organizations. Suc ...

. Stein was the guest of honor at the Junior League of Raleigh's North Carolina First Lady's Luncheon, held on January 10, 2025 at the

North Carolina Museum of Art The North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA) is an art museum in Raleigh, North Carolina. It opened in 1956 as the first major museum collection in the country to be formed by state legislation and funding. Since the initial 1947 appropriation that ...

. Due to inclement weather, the Stein's inaugural ball was postponed until the spring. In April 2025, Stein was appointed to the North Carolina Joint Reentry Council by North Carolina Secretary of Adult Correction Leslie Cooley Dismukes. The council focuses on the rehabilitation and reentry into society of formerly incarcerated people.

Personal life

She is married to

, whom she met in 1993 while interning for North Carolina Attorney General

Mike Easley Michael Francis Easley (born March 23, 1950) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the List of Governors of North Carolina, 72nd governor of North Carolina from 2001 to 2009. He is the first governor of North Carolina to have been ...

. They have three children. The family are members of Temple Beth Or, a

Reform Reform refers to the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The modern usage of the word emerged in the late 18th century and is believed to have originated from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement, which ...

synagogue in Raleigh.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stein, Anna Harris Living people 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American women lawyers American Reform Jews First ladies and gentlemen of North Carolina Jewish American people in North Carolina politics Jewish American women in politics North Carolina Democrats People from Elkin, North Carolina People from Winston-Salem, North Carolina Richard J. Reynolds High School alumni Spouses of North Carolina politicians University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni Women in North Carolina politics Date of birth missing (living people) Year of birth missing (living people)