Rep. Donnie Loftis, R-Gaston, replaces the late Dana Bumgardner in the House, and he was sworn in officially Monday night.
It was the only item of business on the House floor and, after confirming there wouldn't be any votes taken, Democrats walked out en masse.
The state party said in a statement after the brief ceremony that Loftis' seating shows the Republican Party is "trending towards extremism."
Loftis declined to speak to reporters after the session wrapped, saying he'd rather spend time celebrating with his family, who attended.
“My Oath of Enlistment has the phrase ‘both foreign and domestic,’" he said on Facebook at the time.
"The Republican Party hand-picked Loftis to join their ranks, further demonstrating how trending towards extremism is the future of the North Carolina Republican Party.”.
A half-dozen Democrats remained in their seats as Loftis was officially seated, though half of those did not applaud when Republicans gave Loftis an obligatory round of applause. »