North Carolina
NC’s top Democratic, Republican party leaders disagree on the impact of swapping Biden for Harris
As political insiders scramble to divine how President Joe Biden’s last-minute decision not to seek reelection this year will shake up the presidential race, North Carolina’s top Democratic and Republican bosses are painting very different pictures of what it means.
North Carolina Republican Party Chairman Jason Simmons said that nothing will change if Democrats nominate Vice President Kamala Harris to take over for Biden in the presidential race. Republicans can tie all of the attacks they had planned to use against Biden to Harris, he said, since she’s been there for every minute of his administration. And she should face additional scrutiny, he added, over whether she had conspired to cover up any issues on Biden’s part.
“The Democrat Party is still without its candidate, and in complete disarray,” Simmons told WRAL News. “Whoever their candidate is, they’re still going to have to address — especially if it’s Kamala Harris, who has been an enabler for Joe Biden, and really, we look at what Joe Biden has done the last three to four years, it’s been destructive both on our economy as well as our society — they’re gonna have to address those questions.”
North Carolina Democratic Party Chairwoman Anderson Clayton, however, said a Harris nomination would change everything. It’s not just the record-setting donations of $81 million in a single day that poured in to Democratic coffers following Biden’s announcement that he was endorsing Harris in his stead, but also her potential to inspire voters who may not have been as enthused by Biden as they now are by Harris.
“She’s always been the champion of issues that young people right now — that my generation — is seeing in this country,” Clayton told WRAL News, listing abortion rights and LGBTQ rights as two key examples of that. She said Harris championed those issues in her previous roles as a U.S. senator and California attorney general, even before becoming vice president.
“Young voters see a president, or the potential of a president, that has always been able to actually get [things] done,” Clayton added.
Ever since Barack Obama in 2008 became the only Democratic presidential candidate to win North Carolina since Jimmy Carter, local Democrats have been chasing — with little success — the “Obama coalition” of young people and rural Black voters who came to the polls in force in 2008 but have not voted in as large numbers since then. Harris likely offers Democrats a better shot at energizing those voters than Biden or 2016 nominee Hillary Clinton, each of whom lost North Carolina to former president Donald Trump, who’s now running for the third straight election.
At 59, Harris is almost two full decades younger than Trump. With Biden out, the 78-year-old Trump is now the oldest presidential nominee in U.S. history. Harris would also be the first Black woman ever nominated for president by a major party, and just the second Black major party nominee ever, after Obama.
Clayton noted the explosion of social media memes — many of them coconut-themed, after a viral video of a Harris speech referencing a coconut tree that Republicans unearthed for an attack ad, but which Democrats have since adopted as pro-Harris symbolism. And she noted pop stars from multiple generations are now backing Harris to their fans, from Beyonce to Charlie XCX.
“I think that the energy has shifted in a generous direction towards the vice president,” Clayton said. “… She’s tapping into something that’s in the zeitgeist right now. It’s connecting politics and pop culture.”
Simmons and the GOP are more interested in connecting Harris with the border and the Biden administration’s immigration policy — which polls show is not only the main issue for Republicans this year, but also a concern of many independent and Democratic voters.
Early in his presidency, Biden put Harris in charge of working with Central American leaders to address root causes of immigration from their countries into the U.S. She wasn’t in charge of the border itself, or U.S. immigration policy, but Republicans don’t plan on voters making that distinction as the election heats up.
“She is a failed vice president — an individual who, anything that she’s been given responsibility for, has floundered,” Simmons said. “You look at the southern border, it’s in worse shape than when she was put in as, quote-unquote, the ‘czar’ of the border.”
Clayton dismissed GOP criticism of Harris and Biden’s record on immigration, accusing Republicans in Congress of cynically blocking immigration reforms Biden had proposed. She said the GOP would prefer immigration policy to remain broken so they can use it as a political issue.
But while Democrats feel better about Harris’s chances to energize younger voters, there’s still the question of how — or whether — Democrats can reach the rural Black voters who helped elevate Obama but have had below-average turnout rates otherwise. Clayton acknowledged in the interview that Democrats have not done enough to reach out to those communities. A 26-year-old from rural Person County, Clayton took over the state Democratic Party last year and said the party is putting a new focus on rural outreach. Of the 20 majority-minority counties in North Carolina, she said, 18 are rural.
“We don’t have people that are messengers in these communities, that feel like they are a part of something bigger than themselves right now,” Clayton said. “… And so a lot of those Democrats, they felt like they were siloed off. They felt like they were not being reached out to and that their voices weren’t being heard.”
Clayton added that she’s told Harris’s staff that she needs to get out in rural North Carolina herself, shaking hands and showing people they haven’t been forgotten. But Republicans think they have a shot at reaching many of those rural voters, too — even those who aren’t white.
The Republican National Committee this past week kicked off with the Pledge of Allegiance delivered by a rural North Carolinian, state Rep. Jarrod Lowery, who’s a member of the Lumbee Tribe. And the first-ever Black nominee for governor in North Carolina didn’t come from the Democratic Party but rather from the GOP, this year, in Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson.
Nearly 90% of Republican voters in North Carolina are white, and comparable percentages of Black voters support Democrats.
But while Clayton and the Democrats try to regain lost ground in rural areas, Simmons said the GOP is trying to increase its appeal “not just to our average voters, but to every voter — making sure that our Black and Hispanic communities, or Asian communities, understand that there is a strong framework and a foundation here at the Republican Party that will benefit them.”
At least two people are dead and “several” others are injured after a “planned fight” at a North Carolina park escalated into a mass shooting, authorities said.
Police have identified several victims and suspects after Monday’s shooting at Leinbach Park near Jefferson Middle School, according to the Winston-Salem Police Department.
Authorities confirmed there were multiple victims in the shooting, but did not provide an exact number. The suspects were still at large over two hours later.
Officers were called to the park just before 10 a.m. after reports of a fight, which then escalated into multiple people shooting each other.
Area schools are not in lockdown, and classes are operating as normal, police said.
“Due to the number of people involved, efforts are ongoing to account for everyone. At this time, some of those involved in the incident are juveniles,” police said.
According to local news station WFMY, at least three people were taken to the hospital. Officials have not shared their conditions.
Police said the shooting was an isolated incident and remains under investigation.
This is a developing story
The NC Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at Sunday, April 19, 2026 results for each game:
Winning Pick 3 numbers from April 19 drawing
Day: 6-2-0, Fireball: 6
Evening: 4-1-7, Fireball: 5
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from April 19 drawing
Day: 7-6-9-4, Fireball: 4
Evening: 8-1-5-6, Fireball: 6
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 5 numbers from April 19 drawing
02-21-32-35-37
Check Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Double Play numbers from April 19 drawing
18-26-27-31-42
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from April 19 drawing
32-42-52-53-55, Bonus: 05
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All North Carolina Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $599.
For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at North Carolina Lottery Offices. By mail, send a prize claim form, your signed lottery ticket, copies of a government-issued photo ID and social security card to: North Carolina Education Lottery, P.O. Box 41606, Raleigh, NC 27629. Prize claims less than $600 do not require copies of photo ID or a social security card.
To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a prize claim form and deliver the form, along with your signed lottery ticket and government-issued photo ID and social security card to any of these locations:
- Asheville Regional Office & Claim Center: 16-G Regent Park Blvd., Asheville, NC 28806, 877-625-6886 press #1. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Greensboro Regional Office & Claim Center: 20A Oak Branch Drive, Greensboro, NC 27407, 877-625-6886 press #2. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Charlotte Regional Office & Claim Center: 5029-A West W. T. Harris Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28269-1861, 877-625-6886 press #3. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- NC Lottery Headquarters: Raleigh Claim Center & Regional Office, 2728 Capital Blvd., Suite 144, Raleigh, NC 27604, 877-625-6886 press #4. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
- Greenville Regional Office & Claim Center: 2790 Dickinson Avenue, Suite A, Greenville, NC 27834, 877-625-6886 press #5. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Wilmington Regional Office & Claim Center: 123 North Cardinal Drive Extension, Suite 140, Wilmington, NC 28405, 877-625-6886 press #6. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
Check previous winning numbers and payouts at https://nclottery.com/.
When are the North Carolina Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 11 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 10:38 p.m. daily.
- Pick 3, 4: 3:00 p.m. and 11:22 p.m. daily.
- Cash 5: 11:22 p.m. daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 11:15 p.m. daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Carolina Connect editor. You can send feedback using this form.
The North Carolina Tar Heels will be a young program across the board next season, with well over two dozen freshmen and numerous additions from the transfer portal this offseason. Expectations for the 2026 season are lowered dramatically after a disastrous first season for head coach Bill Belichick, though those expectations could help the Tar Heels fly under the radar.
As the Tar Heels approach the end of spring ball, it is time to look at the veterans of the team—the ones who have the experience to lead, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Let’s look at three underrated seniors for the 2026 football season.
Ade Willie, Cornerback
Willie joins the Tar Heels program after four years with Michigan State, as the former 4-star player in the 2022 recruiting class gets an opportunity to not only provide depth to the secondary, but potentially start Week 0 against TCU.
Willie played in over 30 games with the Spartans and brings experience in the secondary at cornerback and safety, along with quality length and closing speed to the football. For a defense that needs players to step up, the redshirt senior from IMG Academy will be asked to do so.
Isaiah Johnson, Defensive Lineman
The defensive line is beginning to look like one of the Tar Heels’ strengths for the 2026 season. Johnson, a former transfer from Arizona, enters his redshirt senior year looking to add another year of production after 40 tackles and two sacks this past season.
North Carolina has an impressive group of starters with Malkart Abou-Jaoude, Leroy Jackson, and incoming transfer Jaylen Harvey. Johnson adds value to the group as a run defender with the ability to penetrate the pocket. While not discussed as a key player, Johnson’s name will be used plenty during the regular season as a potential standout for the program’s defensive front.
Coleman Bryson, Safety
Bryson was a reserve player for the Tar Heels’ secondary last season as a big nickel defender in the rotation. Heading into his redshirt senior year, the former Minnesota Gopher is looking to become a full-time starter in the secondary.
It wasn’t long ago when Bryson was making plays as the 2022 Pinstripe Bowl Defensive MVP. His special teams abilities were valuable for North Carolina last season, and he flashed at times in coverage against tight ends, including a pass breakup in the season-opener against TCU. The Waynesville, North Carolina, native could be a key defender on the back-seven in 2026.
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