North Carolina
Raleigh hosts Esports Travel Summit as it looks to attract tournaments
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — Local tourism officials, businesses, and universities are taking part in the Esports Travel Summit in Raleigh as they look to draw future events to the state.
“People are here. So, (it’s) one thing to hear about it, read about it, even see videos, but actually physically coming in and seeing what they’re able to offer and all the great things that we have here, how nice of an area it actually is,” said Caleb Smith, co-founder of North Carolina Esports Academy in Cary.
A report by PLAYHRDR Advisors, the Greater Raleigh Esports Organizing Committee and students from the Niner Esports program at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte listed Raleigh as a “Top 5 Major Esports Event Host Destination between 2021 and 2023.”
“Raleigh as a destination is just amazing. The team is so involved and dedicated to Esports and this is the state-of-the-art. We would love to see this across the US with all the governments and cities involved as much as Raleigh is. We are hoping to find more opportunities in the future to bring more events to Raleigh,” said Jascha Braeker, a Hospitality Manager with ESL FACEIT Group.
Previous Esports events at PNC Arena and the Raleigh Convention Center have generated millions in economic impact, including hotel books, restaurant, and retail sales. The growing presence has also been felt at the university level, with NC State utilizing a $16 million grant from the state to expand its operations.
“We are in the process of developing an Esports arena that will be opening up in a couple of years in Raleigh,” said Cody Elsen, NC State’s Esports Program Director.
Currently, it’s treated as an extracurricular activity.
“We have over 1,000 students that are involved in Esports at NC State right now in the club, but we will definitely do varsity competitive teams at some point with structure, coaching, staff, resources,” said Elsen.
Elsen explained they are working to bring events to campus, noting possible locations include Reynolds Coliseum and Hunt Library.
“A lot of the science, technology, engineering and math goes into this. Tons of analytic work, analyzing things within the game and out of the game. Then obviously it’s digital, like the marketing side, the business management,” said Elsen.
The establishment of such programs is a consideration for students at community colleges looking at furthering their education.
“I teach them soft skills that are leadership, time management, decision making under duress,” added Tu Nguyen, the Esports Coach at Guilford Technical Community College “It is 100% a question for every student-athlete I have. They will immediately ask, ‘Are there any staff-led or coach-led situations in North Carolina?’”
Drawing events to the region has also allowed students hands-on networking opportunities while allowing them to gain experience.
“What really appeals to me about being this close to Raleigh is that they can come here and there are often volunteer opportunities,” said Dwayne Meekins, the Esports Coordinator at North Carolina A&T University.
On Friday, the North Carolina Esports Summit will be held at the Raleigh Convention Center, with NC Varsity Esports + STEM League High School Championship held Saturday and Sunday.
Copyright © 2024 WTVD-TV. All Rights Reserved.
North Carolina
2026 primary turnout report released for eastern NC counties; see your county’s numbers
Here are the voter turnout numbers for the 2026 primary election, according to the North Carolina State Board of Elections.
Hyde County had the highest voter turnout, while Onslow County had the lowest turnout. Check out what the voter turnout in your county was below:
BERTIE COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
31.85% (3,911 out of 12,280)
CARTERET COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
29.06% (16,543 out of 56,931)
CRAVEN COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
18.63% (14,119 out of 75,778)
DUPLIN COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
21.93% (6,981 out of 31,832)
EDGECOMBE COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
18.16% (6,428 out of 35,396)
GREENE COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
19.70% (2,147 out of 10,900)
HYDE COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
37.27% (1,123 out of 3,013)
JONES COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
25.91% (1,805 out of 6,966)
LENOIR COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
16.73% (6,251 out of 37,371)
MARTIN COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
17.61% (2,858 out of 16,228)
ONSLOW COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
11.44% (14,816 out of 129,537)
PAMLICO COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
24.03% (2,446 out of 10,180)
PITT COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
15.71% (19,429 out of 123,705)
TYRRELL COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
30.49% (723 out of 2,371)
WASHINGTON COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
28.66% (2,312 out of 8,067)
WAYNE COUNTY
Ballots Cast:
21.49% (16,408 out of 76,358)
North Carolina
Statewide tornado drill has NC schools and workplaces practicing safety
Wednesday, March 4, 2026 6:41PM
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — North Carolina schools and businesses took part in a statewide tornado drill Wednesday morning as part of Severe Weather Awareness Week.
The National Weather Service led the drill at 9:30 a.m., broadcasting it on NOAA Weather Radio and the Emergency Alert System. Schools, workplaces and households across the state were encouraged to join in.
The National Weather Service didn’t issue a follow up alert to mark the end of the drill. Instead, each school or business wrapped up once they felt they had practiced the procedures thoroughly.
Wednesday’s drill also replaced the regular weekly NOAA Weather Radio test.
SEE | New warning for parents amid new ‘fire-breathing’ social media trend
Make sure to download the ABC 11 Mobile App ABC11 North Carolina Apps for Connected TV, Mobile News, Echo
Copyright © 2026 WTVD-TV. All Rights Reserved.
North Carolina
North Carolina Rep. Valerie Foushee holds narrow lead over challenger Nida Allam
Nida Allam in 2022; Rep. Valerie Foushee (D-NC) in 2025.
Jonathan Drake/Reuters; Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
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Jonathan Drake/Reuters; Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Incumbent Rep. Valerie Foushee holds a narrow lead over challenger Nida Allam in the Democratic primary for North Carolina’s 4th Congressional district as ballots continue to be counted.
In a race seen as an early test of whether Democratic voters desire generational change within the party, Foushee holds a lead of just over 1,000 votes with 99% of results in so far, according to the Associated Press.
Under state law, provisional votes will be counted in the coming days in a district that includes Durham and Chapel Hill. If the election results end up within a 1% margin, Allam could request a recount.
Successfully ousting an incumbent lawmaker is often extremely difficult and rare. However, there have been recent upsets in races as some voters are calling for new leaders and several sitting members of Congress face primary challengers this cycle.
Allam, a 32-year-old Durham County Commissioner, is running to the left of Foushee, 69, framing her candidacy as part of a broader rejection of longtime Democratic norms.
On the campaign trail, Allam ran on an anti-establishment message, pledging to be a stronger fighter than Foushee in Congress, both in standing up against President Trump’s agenda and when pushing for more ambitious policy.
“North Carolina is a purple state that often gets labeled red, but we’re not a red state,” she told NPR in an interview last month, emphasizing the need to address affordability concerns. “We are a state of working-class folks who just want their elected officials to champion the issues that are impacting them.”
She drew a contrast with the congresswoman on immigration, voicing support for abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Foushee has declined to go that far, advocating instead for ICE to be defunded and for broader reforms to the federal immigration system.
Allam also clashed with Foushee over U.S. policy towards Israel. As a vocal opponent of Israel’s war in Gaza, Allam swore off campaign donations from pro-Israel lobbying groups, such as AIPAC, and repeatedly criticized Foushee for previously accepting such funds.
Though Foushee announced last year that she would not accept AIPAC donations this cycle, she and Allam continued to spar over the broader role of outside spending in the race.
Their matchup comes four years after the candidates first squared off in 2022, when Allam lost to Foushee in what became the most expensive primary in the state’s history, with outside groups spending more than $3.8 million.
However, this year is poised to break that record. Outside groups have reported spending more than $4.4 million on the primary matchup, according to Federal Election Commission filings.
WUNC’s Colin Campbell contributed to this report.
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