State Sen. Bill Cook, a Republican, said he wants a second term in the N.C. General Assembly so he can continue to help North Carolina residents; especially those in Senate District 1.

Cook, a Beaufort County resident, defeated then-incumbent state Sen. Stan White in 2012 to secure his first two-year term in the state Senate. White has announced he is seeking the Democratic nomination in an effort to regain the seat he lost to Cook. The district includes eight counties in northeastern North Carolina, including Beaufort County.

Cook announced his re-election bid Monday afternoon at the Beaufort County Courthouse.

Cook, in an interview Monday morning, said he wants to return to Raleigh and help his fellow Republicans continue their work to lower taxes, reduce regulations and improve education in an effort to put the state in a better position to help its residents and attract business and industry. Doing so, Cook said, will help improve the state’s economy.

Asked why voters should vote for him, Cook said, “Look at my track record, see what I’ve done,” Cook said. “I think I’ve got a good record. I’ve been on the right side of all the things (I’ve) talked about. I’ve certainly being trying to help the folks everywhere that I could. A fair-minded person would recognize that.”

Cook reviewed what he considers accomplishments by the GOP-led General Assembly in its last session.

“I think we’ve done just a superb job of changing things. We did tax reform. We reduced taxes over a billion dollars. We’ve got a tax rate that is now 5.8 percent flat versus what it was at 7.75 percent maximum rate. We got rid of the death tax. We capped the gas tax,” Cook said. “We’ve taken North Carolina from about 44^th to 17^th most-friendly tax state in the Union. We’ve given teachers a raise. We’ve changed the K-through-12 system so that … salaries are based on merit, giving teachers a chance to make at least another $5,000 a year over four years. Regulatory reform, we’ve done that. We’ve now got a customer-friendly regulatory agency in (the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources). We’ve done a lot of good things. I just don’t want to see them slowed down or reversed.”

If re-elected, Cook said, there are some things he wants to accomplish.

“I think I want to give the teachers another raise. They got a raise lost year, I think, of 1.2 percent. I think it’s more important to spend our tax dollars efficiently in a focused manner than it is to throw money at education,” Cook said. “However, to make sure we attract the best and brightest folks want to teach to the North Carolina system, we need to increase (teachers’) salaries to the point we can do that. I’m not sure the current level is such that we can attract as many teachers as I would like to see.”

Cook addressed the region’s high unemployment rate and what needs to be done to bring more jobs to the area.

“A year ago, in November 2013, our unemployment rate in North Carolina was 9.4 (percent). Now, the rate is 7.4 (percent). For the first time in probably 10 or 11 years, the unemployment rate in the state is not a percent point higher than the rest of the nation, which tells me we’re going better than most of the folks out there in our country,” Cook said. “I want to see that trend continue here in Beaufort County. We’ve got terrible unemployment rates, historically, at last in the last 10 or 11 years. I believe that the policies we’ve instituted — lowering taxes, less regulation, better education — are going to bring more jobs, not only to the state in total but to places like Beaufort County where there’s such a need for new industry, new jobs. Most of the jobs in this country, and the state, come from small businesses. I believe Beaufort County is strategically placed, given the right tax and regulation policies, to grow and grow perhaps faster than the rest of the state.”

Cook said he wants to see a replacement bridge for the existing Bonner Bridge built as soon as possible. Cook said that “overzealous” environmentalists “having been causing all kinds of havoc down there.” Cook also said “some of the problems down there are federal problems.”

“I’ll bring attention and pressure to the right folks to try to get Bonner Bridge built, the new bridge, in the fastest way possible,” Cook said.

“I’d like to see Oregon Inlet opened up … so that boats can come and go easily, which would open up that whole area to tremendous growth,” Cook said.

He also wants to see the proposed mid-Currituck (County) bridge built, saying he believes the new bridge would pay for itself many times over in the future.