North Carolina

‘On the razor’s edge’: How North Carolina could decide the US presidency

Published

1 year ago

October 31, 2024

‘On the razor’s edge’: How North Carolina could decide the US presidency

About 20 years ago, in the early 2000s, Paul Shumaker’s party began experiencing a troubling trend.

Shumaker, a Republican operative with a classic Carolinian drawl, laid it out for Al Jazeera in stark terms: Republican registration started declining, while the number of “unaffiliated” voters gradually rose.

“Now there are no liberal Republicans left, and there are fewer moderate Republicans, too,” Shumaker said.

He shared data showing how both major parties, Republicans and Democrats, have, in total, invested more than $147m in the state over the last 10 years — but even that couldn’t stop an “explosion” of unaffiliated voters, who are now the clear majority.

Of the 8.5 million voters in North Carolina this year, approximately 38 percent are registered as “unaffiliated”. That dwarfs the 32 percent who identify as Democrat and the 30 percent who say they’re Republican.

This explosion of “unaffiliated” voters dovetails with larger demographic trends showing Americans bucking traditional party labels, adding to the unpredictability of elections.

However, that doesn’t mean “unaffiliated” voters will opt for a third-party candidate. Surveys have shown that the majority of independent voters do, in fact, “lean” consistently towards either the Republican side or the Democrats.

Which is to say, they’re very much up for grabs — and in demand — by the two major parties.

“Neither party can win without building a coalition for unaffiliated voters,” Shumaker said.

Republicans, he explained, need to appeal to unaffiliated voters in the suburbs and cities — two areas Democrats are expected to win.

Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris waves to the crowd at a campaign rally in Greenville, North Carolina, on October 13 [Jonathan Drake/Reuters]

Democrats, meanwhile, are hoping to use “unaffiliated” voters to compensate for losses in their base. More than 2.4 million people in North Carolina registered as Democrat as of October 26 — down from more than 2.6 million at around the same point in the 2020 election cycle.

Party strategists like Jackson hope to make up the loss by appealing to voters in left-wing strongholds — typically urban centres — while holding ground in rural areas.

After all, North Carolina has the largest rural population in the US after Texas.

“People often say you have to lose by less in the rural areas, but that’s not true: You just have to stop the bleeding,” Jackson said. “If Kamala Harris holds [outgoing President] Joe Biden’s margins, she could have a shot.”

Mac McCorkle, a Democratic political consultant with a cheery, amiable aura, refers to unaffiliated voters as “precious” to his party. He believes only a small number of voters will decide whether North Carolina backs Harris or Trump.

“It’s not like 20 percent of the electorate can go either way,” he said. “We’re talking about a race that’ll be decided by one, two, three percent.”

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North Carolina

North Carolina vs. NC State football betting line, odds, spread | Week 14 2025

Published

7 hours ago

November 27, 2025

Press Room

North Carolina vs. NC State football betting line, odds, spread | Week 14 2025

A pair of ACC teams meet when the NC State Wolfpack (6-5) face off against the North Carolina Tar Heels (4-7) on Saturday, November 29, 2025 at Wayne Day Family Field at Carter-Finley Stadium. The Wolfpack are favored by 7 points. The over/under for the contest is 47.5 points.

Against the Duke Blue Devils in their most recent contest, the Tar Heels lost 32-25.

The Heels’ Gio Lopez went 21-for-27 for 204 yards against Duke, with one TD and no INTs.

Last time around, the Wolfpack defeated the Florida State Seminoles, with 21-11 being the final score.

In the article below, we’ll give you all the details you need to watch this matchup on ACC Network.

Check out: US LBM Coaches Poll powered by USA Today sports

North Carolina vs NC State line, odds, spread, over/under

College football odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds updated Thursday at 10:15 p.m. ET. For a full list of sports betting odds, access USA TODAY Sports Betting Scores Odds Hub.

Spread favorite: NC State (-7)
Moneyline: NC State (-275), North Carolina (+220)
Total: 47.5 points

North Carolina vs NC State game info

Game day: Saturday, November 29, 2025
Game time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: Raleigh, North Carolina
Stadium: Wayne Day Family Field at Carter-Finley Stadium
Live stream: Watch on Fubo! (Regional restrictions may apply)

Watch NC State vs. North Carolina on Fubo! (Regional restrictions may apply)

North Carolina betting info

North Carolina has won two games against the spread in conference action this season.
The Tar Heels have covered the spread five times over 11 games with a set spread.
North Carolina has been an underdog by 7 points or more three times this season in ACC action, and covered the spread in one of those games.
In games they have played as 7-point underdogs or more, the Tar Heels have an ATS record of 2-2-1.
North Carolina and its opponents have combined to hit the over three out of five times this year in ACC play.
This year, four Tar Heels games have gone over the point total.

2025 North Carolina leaders

Lopez: 1,629 PASS YDS / 162.9 YPG / 64.9% / 9 TD / 5 INT / 78 CAR / 141 RUSH YDS / 3 TD
Demon June: 82 CAR / 461 YDS / 46.1 YPG / 2 TD / 17 REC / 159 YDS / 19.9 YPG / 1 TD
Davion Gause: 60 CAR / 253 YDS / 28.1 YPG / 3 TD / 14 REC / 123 YDS / 15.4 YPG / 2 TD
Jordan Shipp: 52 REC / 581 YDS / 52.8 YPG / 5 TD
Kobe Paysour: 30 REC / 388 YDS / 38.8 YPG / 1 TD

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Judges approve North Carolina’s use of GOP-friendly district map – UPI.com

Published

1 day ago

November 27, 2025

Press Room

Judges approve North Carolina’s use of GOP-friendly district map – UPI.com

Nov. 26 (UPI) — A three-judge panel on Wednesday permitted North Carolina to adopt a redrawn congressional map that is expected to favor the Republican Party.

The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina unanimously ruled against the plaintiffs’ request for an injunction against legislation approved in October by the state’s General Assembly that critics say threaten one federal congressional district, specifically Congressional District 1, which represented by Democrat Don Davis.

In their 57-page ruling on Wednesday, the three Republican-appointed judges said the plaintiffs failed to prove that the state’s General Assembly enacted the legislation, Senate Bill 249, with the intent to “minimize or cancel out the voting potential” of Black North Carolinians as they had claimed.

The ruling comes in protracted litigation that began in 2023, when the Republican-led state sought to redraw some of the districts for electing representatives to the state Senate and federal Congress.

The plaintiffs, who include the North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, sued that December. In October, amid litigation on the maps, the state’s General Assembly passed legislation to swap counties between Congressional District 1 and Congressional District 3.

The plaintiffs again sued the state, alleging the legislation was unconstitutional and asking the court to enjoin S.B. 249.

Earlier this month, the same three-judge panel issued a ruling approving the changes to the map put forward in 2023.

A hearing on S.B. 249 was held Nov. 19, during which the plaintiffs argued that the speed with which the General Assembly passed the 2025 plan was evidence of discriminatory intent.

But the panel of judges disagreed, stating “they have offered no reason to believe that the speed of the 2025 process indicates an intent to discriminate on the basis of race. Nor do they explain what weight we are supposed to assign to what they call ‘the near uniform outcry among North Carolina voters against the map and the process.’”

The ruling comes amid something of a gerrymandering race in the United States that began in earnest when Texas this summer — under pressure of President Donald Trump — sought a mid-decade redraw of its maps to make them more favorable to the Republican Party.

California is in the process of redrawing its maps in retaliation and other states under control of both parties have followed with similar plans.

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North Carolina calls on Shopify to stop illegal e-cigarette sales on its platform

Published

2 days ago

November 26, 2025

Press Room

North Carolina calls on Shopify to stop illegal e-cigarette sales on its platform

RALEIGH, N.C. (WLOS) — North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson has joined a coalition of 25 other attorneys general calling on Shopify, a popular e-commerce platform, to take stronger action against merchants who use its services to sell illegal tobacco products and e-cigarettes.

In a Nov. 24 news release, the AG’s office said there are more than two dozen illegal e-cigarette websites that utilize Shopify’s platform and another 200 websites that are selling illegal tobacco products.

“If states and the federal government create laws to protect our residents, companies can’t sidestep those for their own profit,” Jackson said in the news release. “We have protections against selling e-cigarettes to children because we know how harmful it is for them, and we need Shopify to step up and keep those products off of its platforms.”

VAPING IMPACTS BLOOD VESSELS & OXYGEN, NEW STUDY SAYS

The AG’s office said that due to their highly addictive nature and potential health risks, especially for young people, e-cigarettes are strictly regulated by federal law, as well as by many state laws across the country. E-cigarettes also cannot be sold to people under the age of 21.

Jackson’s office said Shopify has removed merchants for using its services for unlawful activities in recent years, but merchants continue using it to sell e-cigarettes.

The bipartisan attorneys general are asking Shopify to work together to find a solution that keeps unlawful products off their platforms and out of the market, according to the release.

NORTH CAROLINA LAWSUIT DOCUMENTS AGAINST JUUL NOW PUBLIC

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In 2019, North Carolina sued electronic cigarette company JUUL for unlawfully designing, marketing, and selling e-cigarettes to teenagers. It won a $47.8 million judgment against Juul in 2021.

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