North Carolina
North Carolina may be the hottest political battleground of 2024
![North Carolina may be the hottest political battleground of 2024 North Carolina may be the hottest political battleground of 2024](https://www.economist.com/img/b/1280/720/90/media-assets/image/20230617_USD000.jpg)
The most fascinating political chess match in America outside Washington, DC—where the usual game is more like 52-card pickup anyway—is taking place in North Carolina, involving races from the local to the national level. Joe Biden, who is already running campaign advertising in the state, made his sixth trip there as president on June 9th, the same day as Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida and a day ahead of two other Republican candidates, Mike Pence and Donald Trump.
At the state Republican convention in Greensboro on June 10th, Mr Trump called North Carolina “a very, very special place” and boasted of his “tremendous success here”. He chose not to mention that from 2016 to 2020 his margin of victory plunged by 2.3 percentage points, to fewer than 75,000 votes out of more than 5.4m cast. Among the 26 states he won in 2020, that was his narrowest edge. Whereas a Democrat has a plausible path to victory without North Carolina’s 16 electoral votes, a Republican does not.
Having dominated legislative races in rural areas, Republicans have the chance to entrench control: this spring a Democratic lawmaker stunned her party by defecting, thereby providing Republicans with majorities big enough to make law over vetoes by the governor, Roy Cooper, a Democrat in his second term. Republicans won a majority on the elected state Supreme Court last year, removing another check.
Yet the governor gives every sign of feeling he has the Republicans right where he wants them. A genial, canny centrist first elected to the legislature back in 1986—he wrote the veto law, in 1995—Mr Cooper thinks they are overplaying their hand. “They’re beginning to hear from their constituents,” he says with a chuckle, sitting in the governor’s mansion in Raleigh and gesturing toward the statehouse. “I’m talking to their constituents and informing them of what’s going on behind closed doors over there.”
The legislature has begun stripping the governor of some powers, granting itself authority to make certain appointments. Mr Cooper is worried about what that means for the balance of power, but does not think voters will pay much attention to such mechanics. “They care about the issues that affect their day-to-day life, so they care about some of the things that are beginning to result from this grab for power,” he says. He points to a 12-week ban on abortion that the assembly just imposed over his veto, and a school-voucher plan to let parents, regardless of income, use public money to pay for private school.
Mr Cooper, whom polls show to be the most popular state politician, has declared a state of emergency in public education and is using his bully pulpit to warn that the abortion ban is a step toward even tighter restrictions. A poll by Meredith College in February found that 57% of the state’s residents supported keeping or expanding the previous law, which allowed abortion up to 20 weeks. Republican lawmakers argue that their law is a sensible middle ground. “The things in this bill are not obstacles to abortion,” the state’s speaker pro tempore, Sarah Stevens, insisted during floor debate. “They’re safeguards.” That is a posture unlikely to satisfy either Democrats or fervently anti-abortion Republicans.
Mr Cooper is term-limited, which means North Carolina will have one of the fiercest races for governor in 2024. The likely Democratic nominee is Josh Stein, the state attorney-general, who is cut from Mr Cooper’s cloth. The Republican front-runner is Mark Robinson, the lieutenant governor, elected separately from the governor. He models the Trumpist flair that enraptures Republican hardliners but tends to dismay everyone else. He has compared abortion to slavery, called homosexuality and transgenderism “filth” and ridiculed survivors of a school shooting as “media prostit-tots”. He has praised Joe McCarthy and attacked the civil-rights movement as destroying freedoms. Mr Robinson, who is black, complained on Facebook that the movie “Black Panther” was “created by an agnostic Jew” and “put to film” by a “satanic Marxist.” At the state convention, Mr Trump called Mr Robinson “one of the great stars of the party” and said he would endorse him.
Carolina blues
Some Republican activists believe their party’s dominance is assured by the erosion of the historic Democratic loyalty of voters in the rural east of North Carolina, Mr Cooper’s home turf. But Paul Shumaker, a longtime Republican strategist, does not share their optimism. He notes that 75% of the increase in voters in the past decade has occurred in just 12 of the 100 counties, in and near cities that favour Democrats. “My message to my party is if you don’t fix your urban-suburban problem, you won’t fix your statewide problem,” he says. “And not just your supermajority, your majority will be gone by the next decade.”
Mr Cooper is not counting on that trend alone. “Demography may be destiny, but you have to make it work, and you have to get people out to vote,” he says. With all legislative seats on the ballot in 2024, he plans to run a Democratic candidate in every district to motivate Democrats even in overwhelmingly Republican areas. “That will help us overall statewide,” he says. “And I think there’s going to be a historic amount of investment in the governor’s race, because of what’s at stake.”
Republican legislators plan to rewrite voting laws in ways that will advantage them, and they will also be able to draw favourable state and congressional districts. Under the “independent state legislature theory”, North Carolina’s Republicans are arguing at the Supreme Court that legislatures should be free of any court oversight of election laws. The court seems unlikely to endorse that view, but Mr Cooper worries about what it implies for election integrity. “The foundation of democracy is at stake when you have a legislature, just like President Trump, who would do anything to the fabric of the system to stay in power,” he says. “And my goal is that we would never find out whether they would go that far.” ■
Read more from Lexington, our columnist on American politics:
Nikki Haley, like other long shots, sees a path to victory (Jun 1st)
DeSantis is a truer believer, if a lesser politician, than Trump (May 24th)
It turns out that Democrats bus migrants, too (May 18th)
Also: How the Lexington column got its name
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North Carolina
Alabama man on work trip stops to buy $3 quick pick Powerball ticket, wins 6-figure jackpot
![Alabama man on work trip stops to buy quick pick Powerball ticket, wins 6-figure jackpot Alabama man on work trip stops to buy quick pick Powerball ticket, wins 6-figure jackpot](https://www.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/authoring-images/2024/08/02/USAT/74654762007-screenshot-15.png?auto=webp&crop=1164,656,x0,y114&format=pjpg&width=1200)
Christopher Baker of Leesburg, Alabama was on a work trip in Hickory, North Carolina, when he thought he’d try his luck on a lotto game. It turned out to be a lucrative Powerball win.
An Alabama man on a work trip in North Carolina bought a $3 Quick Pick Powerball ticket on a whim and walked away with a six-figure windfall.
Christopher Baker of Leesburg in northeastern Alabama bought his lucky ticket in July in Hickory, North Carolina, where had been traveling for work, according to Powerball.
When the numbers were drawn, Baker says he had to do a double-take when he realized he had a $100,000 winning ticket. He had matched four white balls and the red Powerball, which would have been $50,000, but a 2X multiplier doubled the win and the disbelief.
“I just kept looking at it to make sure I was reading it right,” he laughed, according to Powerball. “I told my family but they didn’t believe me. either.”
Baker, who called his win “a shocker.” said he plans to save his winnings to buy a house.
Baker will take home $71,501 after federal and state taxes are withheld.
How to play the Powerball
In order to purchase a $2 Powerball ticket, you’ll have to visit your local convenience store, gas station or grocery store − and in a handful of states, you can purchase tickets online.
To play, you will need to pick six numbers in total to mark on your ticket. Five numbers will be white balls ranging from numbers 1 to 69. The Powerball is red and one number which is between 1 and 26.
If you want to increase your chances of winning, you can add a “Power Play” for $1 which increases the winnings for all non-jackpot prizes. This addition can multiply winnings by 2X, 3X, 4X, 5X, or 10X.
Players can also ask a cashier for a “Quick Pick” where a cashier will give you a computer generated numbers on a printed Powerball ticket.
Drawings are held on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday nights. If there’s no jackpot winner, the cash prize will increase by millions.
Where to purchase tickets
Tickets can be purchased in person at gas stations, convenience stores and grocery stores. Some airport terminals may also sell lottery tickets.
You can also order tickets online through Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network, in these U.S. states and territories: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Texas, Washington D.C. and West Virginia. The Jackpocket app allows you to pick your lottery game and numbers, place your order, see your ticket and collect your winnings all using your phone or home computer.
Jackpocket is the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network. Gannett may earn revenue for audience referrals to Jackpocket services. Must be 18+, 21+ in AZ and 19+ in NE. Not affiliated with any State Lottery. Gambling Problem? Call 1-877-8-HOPE-NY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY); 1-800-327-5050(MA); 1-877-MYLIMIT (OR); 1-800-981-0023 (PR); 1-800-GAMBLER (all others). Visit jackpocket.com/tos for full terms.
North Carolina
Obituary for Kristie Lee Sturgill Blake at Market Street Chapel
North Carolina
NBA Draft Scouting Report: Texas’ Tre Johnson
![NBA Draft Scouting Report: Texas’ Tre Johnson NBA Draft Scouting Report: Texas’ Tre Johnson](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_2209,h_1242,x_1298,y_403/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/nba_draft/01j462h25vxrtranzx37.jpg)
Drake Powell
Guard | UNC
Height: 6’5” | Weight: 185 lbs
2025 Draft Age: 19.78
As a natural wing or off-ball guard, Powell has what it takes to be an impact player at the next level. He boasts the positional size and athleticism to exploit his opponents on either end of the floor. Overall, he’s a very smart player with a competitive edge and is willing to adapt to what his team needs to win.
Powell is really best as an off-ball player offensively, especially given he’s not known for being a self-creator or primary ball-handler. However, he is a smart cutter and has found ways to position himself for success when finding space. To really take his game overall to the next level, the North Carolina freshman will need to prove he can become a better shooter. Whether it’s in the mid-range or beyond the arc, his jumper is inconsistent. Again, as an offensive prospect, he needs to improve to really become a two-way threat. The physical traits are there for him to get where he needs to be, but the development of his offensive game is a huge swing for Powell in terms of draft stock.
On the defensive end of the floor, Powell really shines. His athletic tools allow him to be all over the place and make plays on and off of the ball. He is quick, boasts length and is very smart as a defender. When thinking about what will differentiate him from other prospects at the next level, it will be his upside as a defensive prospect. He plays with tremendous energy and effort and he makes those around him better on the defensive side of the ball. In fact, he is one of the best defenders in the entire freshman class.
If Powell can convince NBA teams that he has the future projection of being a better offensive player, there’s no question he could be one of the most impactful players in the draft. In the meantime, he can lean on his defensive abilities to contribute to winning. The former five-star recruit is following in the footsteps of his father as a Tar Heel, as he played baseball for North Carolina when he was in school.
Mid to Late Lottery Pick in 2025 NBA Draft.
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