Michael Francis "Mike" Easley (born March 23, 1950) is an American politician who served as the 72nd governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina from 2001 to 2009. He is member of the North Carolina Democratic Party and became the first North Carolina governor to plead to a felony by entering an Alford plea to a single state campaign finance violation in a deal that halted a lengthy state and federal investigation.