Martin Luther Nesbitt Jr. was a Democratic member of the North Carolina Senate. He represented the 49th district. An attorney from Asheville, North Carolina, Nesbitt was elected to eleven terms in the state House before moving to the state senate in 2004.

The North Carolina General Assembly 2011–12 was the state legislature that first convened on January 26, 2011, and concluded in December 2012. Members of the North Carolina Senate and the North Carolina House of Representatives were elected on November 2, 2010. This 149th North Carolina General Assembly was the first North Carolina General Assembly with a Republican majority in both chambers since 1870.