Connect with us

North Carolina

North Carolina governor signs 12 bills still left on his desk, vetoes 1 more

Published

on

North Carolina governor signs 12 bills still left on his desk, vetoes 1 more


RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper signed into law on Monday nearly all of the bills that remained on his desk from the pile that the Republican-dominated General Assembly sent him before this year’s work session ended. But he vetoed another measure and will let the legislature’s annual “regulatory reform” measure become law without his signature.

Cooper signed 12 pieces of legislation. Those measures in part locate $68 million to replace expired federal child care center grants for the next six months, ensure anticipated teacher raises for this school year are carried out and resume the automatic removal of criminal charges that were dismissed or that resulted in “not guilty” verdicts.

The state constitution gave Cooper until late Monday night to act on the 14 remaining measures. The vetoed bill, which received unanimous legislative approval, partly addressed how certain court-filed documents are formatted. But Cooper said in his veto message that the bill also “creates legal ambiguity” about eviction orders that could harm low-income people and make it harder to appeal them in court.

The vetoed measures bring to five the number that he formally blocked from the batch of almost 30 bills that the legislators left him in late June. Since Republicans hold narrow veto-proof majorities in the House and Senate, the chances that these vetoes will be overridden are high.

Advertisement

Exactly when the legislature would attempt overrides is unclear, however. The General Assembly is scheduled to meet occasionally for short periods through year’s end starting Wednesday, when no action likely will be taken except to formally receive Cooper’s veto messages. Overrides become difficult when even a handful of GOP members can’t come to Raleigh.

Cooper said the “Regulatory Reform Act” that he declined to sign into law contained some important changes that should become law — and will by his inaction. But he said it also contains a provision where the General Assembly seeks to interfere with the charter and bylaws of the North Carolina Railroad, a private corporation whose stock is owned by the state.

“This isn’t about improving transportation for the people of North Carolina, it’s just another unconstitutional power grab by Republicans,” Cooper said in a news release.

Cooper signed on Monday two budget-related bills that the legislature passed as stopgaps since the Senate and House couldn’t agree on broad adjustments to the second year of the two-year budget enacted last fall. One of the bills includes language formally enacting an average 3% base salary increase for public school teachers starting this fall that lawmakers had previously agreed upon. The other contains child care grant funds.

Cooper said in a news release that legislators should pay teachers significantly more, find a way to extend the grants through 2025 and invest more in early childhood education.

Advertisement

Another bill that Cooper signed into law creates new sex exploitation and extortion crimes. And an omnibus alcohol regulation measure he signed would give local Alcoholic Beverage Control boards discretion to open their retail stores on New Year’s Day, the Fourth of July and Labor Day, but not if Jan. 1 or July 4 falls on a Sunday.

Other bills Cooper recently vetoed address the use of all-terrain and utility vehicles on conventional roads and prohibit local governments from passing housing rules that would prevent landlords from refusing to accept tenants who use federal funds to assist with rent. He also vetoed last week some state building code changes and legislation barring state government from accepting cryptocurrency payments developed by a central bank.



Source link

North Carolina

2026 primary turnout report released for eastern NC counties; see your county’s numbers

Published

on

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:

Advertisement

31.85% (3,911 out of 12,280)

CARTERET COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

29.06% (16,543 out of 56,931)

CRAVEN COUNTY

Advertisement

Ballots Cast:

18.63% (14,119 out of 75,778)

DUPLIN COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

21.93% (6,981 out of 31,832)

Advertisement

EDGECOMBE COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

18.16% (6,428 out of 35,396)

GREENE COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

Advertisement

19.70% (2,147 out of 10,900)

HYDE COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

37.27% (1,123 out of 3,013)

JONES COUNTY

Advertisement

Ballots Cast:

25.91% (1,805 out of 6,966)

LENOIR COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

16.73% (6,251 out of 37,371)

Advertisement

MARTIN COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

17.61% (2,858 out of 16,228)

ONSLOW COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

Advertisement

11.44% (14,816 out of 129,537)

PAMLICO COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

24.03% (2,446 out of 10,180)

PITT COUNTY

Advertisement

Ballots Cast:

15.71% (19,429 out of 123,705)

TYRRELL COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

30.49% (723 out of 2,371)

Advertisement

WASHINGTON COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

28.66% (2,312 out of 8,067)

WAYNE COUNTY

Ballots Cast:

Advertisement

21.49% (16,408 out of 76,358)



Source link

Continue Reading

North Carolina

Statewide tornado drill has NC schools and workplaces practicing safety

Published

on

Statewide tornado drill has NC schools and workplaces practicing safety


Wednesday, March 4, 2026 6:41PM

NC schools and businesses encouraged to practice tornado safety

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.

Advertisement

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.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

North Carolina

North Carolina Rep. Valerie Foushee holds narrow lead over challenger Nida Allam

Published

on

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


hide caption

Advertisement

toggle caption

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.

Advertisement

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.

Advertisement

“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.

Advertisement

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.



Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending