Colin Campbell | Stories

PBS NC axes popular political talk show

Just days before the midterm election, PBS North Carolina’s new leader has canceled the station’s only remaining political talk show.

Supreme Court says Chemours lawsuit can continue

Corporate restructuring can’t be a get out of jail free card for Chemours, the company responsible for PFAS contamination in the Cape Fear River, the N.C. Supreme Court ruled Friday.

NC's strangest legislative race

One of the weirdest legislative races this year has been Guilford County’s House District 59, where redistricting put House Majority Whip Jon Hardister, R-Guilford, into a redrawn district where President Joe Biden got about 500 more votes than President Donald Trump.

Ad Watch: Is Sen. Sydney Batch an 'independent'?

Democrats running in highly competitive suburban races this year are going to great lengths to paint themselves as moderates.

EPA awards funding for air quality monitoring

North Carolina will get about $1 million of $53.4 million grants announced Thursday by the Environmental Protection Agency to monitor air quality.

Bell to join Cooper's UNC commission

House Majority Leader John Bell has agreed to serve on Gov. Roy Cooper’s new commission exploring possible changes to UNC System governance.

Democrats post $11 million fundraising haul

Yesterday we reported on the N.C. Republican Party’s third-quarter fundraising and spending. As of Thursday, we have the N.C. Democratic Party’s numbers for comparison.

Ranking N.C. Senate races by the money spent

Which N.C. Senate districts will be the most competitive on Tuesday? For an idea, we can look to how the N.C. Senate Majority Fund is spending the $7.47 million it’s raised this cycle.

Campaign Spotlight: District 18

I’ll admit this district wasn’t on my list of competitive seats until I started seeing campaign ads in recent weeks.

Cooper drops Rules Review Commission lawsuit

Ahead of a scheduled hearing in Wake County Superior Court, Gov. Roy Cooper’s administration is dropping a lawsuit that challenged the composition of the N.C. Rules Review Commission.

Cooper creates commission to consider UNC board changes

Ever since the legislature created a board to oversee the state’s university system in the 1970s, it has given itself the power to appoint every single member of the UNC Board of Governors.

Surveying views on transportation revenue

As state transportation officials consider their options for increasing revenue to fund roads and other projects, a State Board of Transportation subcommittee heard results Wednesday from a public opinion survey conducted by the N.C. State University Institute for Transportation Research and Education.

Cooper's big role in fundraising

The N.C. Democratic Leadership Committee (the fundraising committee for Democrats on the Council of State) spent $2.18 million in the second quarter, almost all of it funneled to Gov. Roy Cooper’s campaign committee.

State parties bankrolling million-dollar legislative campaigns

The latest round of campaign finance reports were due Tuesday, and they’ve been trickling into the State Board of Elections’ online database – giving us a better sense for the most expensive races as Election Day looms.

Ad Watch: Fake mugshot in a bitter race

Weeks after Democrats cried foul over Photoshopped images in campaign ads, a TV commercial for a Democratic House candidate that features Gov. Roy Cooper also includes a fake mugshot for a Republican House candidate.

Different themes in Supreme Court race depending on whose ads you're seeing

With an opportunity for Republicans to take control of the N.C. Supreme Court through 2028 (Democrats are playing defense in 2024 and 2026 for seats they currently hold), it’s no surprise that the two seats on the ballot this year have attracted unprecedented ad spending and attention.

N.C. History: Murderer haunts courthouse

It’s not surprising that county courthouses are considered some of the most haunted government buildings in North Carolina. Some have hosted trials and other legal dramas for hundreds of years, and some have also housed jails.

Ad Watch: Meyer's closing argument for Democrats

Rep. Graig Meyer, D-Orange, is running for state Senate in a district where President Joe Biden won 65% of the vote. So it’s a bit surprising to see his campaign spending money on ads.

Campaign Spotlight: House District 74

The Winston-Salem area has just one truly competitive legislative race, and this is it.

Vilsack announces broadband money in Raleigh

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack was in North Carolina on Thursday to announce a $17.5 million rural broadband grant that will provide high-speed internet to about 2,700 households, 100 businesses and 76 farms in Warren and western Halifax counties.

Raleigh election could have big impacts for development

It’s not getting much attention in a midterm, but the race for Raleigh City Council and mayor is a key contest for business and development this year.

Follow The Money: Legislative races

The Republican-aligned independent expenditure group called “Citizens for a Better North Carolina” has been a major player in legislative campaigns this year. Now we have a better sense for how much it’s spending and where it’s coming from.

Campaign workers' union blasts Democratic Party

Just two weeks out from Election Day, the N.C. Democratic Party is at odds with the union that represents its campaign workers in the field.

Write-in line on ballot works for one candidate only

When you pick up your ballot this election, you might wonder why there’s a write-in option for the U.S. Senate race but virtually none of the other contests at the top of the ballot.

Campaign Spotlight: House District 36

One of Wake County’s most competitive races is on the southern end of the county, where Republicans are hoping they can flip a House seat and have more than just one member of their party in the Wake delegation.

Folwell issues new report on hospital profits

A new report from State Treasurer Dale Folwell says hospitals are profiting from serving Medicare patients – the latest salvo from Folwell in his ongoing war on hospitals’ business model.

Cooper's new electric vehicle executive order gets mixed reaction

Vehicle manufacturers could be required to sell more electric trucks and buses in the future under an executive order signed by Gov. Roy Cooper on Tuesday.

Will December bring legislators back to Raleigh?

The legislature adjourned yet another brief monthly no-vote session on Thursday, leaving an open question: Will lawmakers do anything at all for the rest of the year?

New UNC funding model addresses declining enrollment

Facing flat and in some cases declining enrollment numbers, UNC System leaders are developing a new model for funding universities that are less dependent on enrollment numbers.

Campaign Spotlight: House District 98

One of Mecklenburg County’s most competitive districts features a rematch between candidates who have already faced off in two previous elections – each winning once.

Millions in outside ad spending to shape N.C. Supreme Court races

While N.C. Supreme Court candidates are busy pledging to take politics out of the judicial branch, several dark money groups backing both sides are injecting millions of dollars worth of ads into the races. Those ads tie the candidates to hot-button issues like abortion, crime and law enforcement funding.

Poll Watch: 1st congressional district

Who’s leading in the polls in the 1st congressional district? It depends which candidate you ask.

Shooting prompts gun, mental health talk at NCGA

Last week’s Raleigh mass shooting was top of mind as the legislature once again began a brief session.

Cooper for president? Or another governor instead?

Over the weekend, Gov. Roy Cooper once again appeared on The Washington Post’s list of the top 10 potential Democratic presidential candidates in 2024.

N.C. History: Our ghostly Capitol

Our October tour of haunted political sites continues at what some have called the most haunted state capitol in the country. Not the Legislative Building – I’m not sure any ghosts could get through those solid concrete walls – the old state Capitol.

Accountants want more K-12 curriculum

Should accounting be considered part of the state’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) curriculum?

A website oops for Supreme Court candidates

An essential checklist item before launching a political campaign is to make sure you’ve registered websites for YourName.com. If you don’t own the domain name that most closely matches your name, your opponents will quickly snap it up.

New American Indian Heritage Commission holds first meeting

State government’s newest commission kicked off on Friday, thanks to a provision included in last year’s state budget.

The cost of keeping up the governor's mansion

The conservative North State Journal publication had an eye-popping statistic recently: The state has spent $2,569,459 on repairs and renovations to the governor’s mansion since Gov. Roy Cooper took office at the beginning of 2017.

Few debates this year in legislative elections

I wrote earlier this week about the lack of debates in congressional races across the state. But there’s a similar dynamic in state legislative races as well.

Wilson wants to fix imbalance in outdoor recreation

Reid Wilson, secretary of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, says there’s another side to the environmental justice issue beyond pollution problems that we don’t often think about.

National Democrats spending big to help Don Davis

By most metrics, North Carolina’s 13th district congressional race (Republican Bo Hines versus Democratic N.C. Sen. Wiley Nickel) is considered more competitive than the 1st district congressional race, where Republican Sandy Smith faces Democratic N.C. Sen. Don Davis.

Campaign Spotlight: House District 25

Republicans have fallen short for several cycles in their efforts to win more legislative districts around Wilson and Rocky Mount. They’re hoping the political environment this year could mean vulnerable Democratic incumbents in this area.

NCGOP's Fisher dies at 74

One of the most fascinating leaders in the N.C. Republican Party has died. Ada Fisher, who passed away Friday at age 74, served as a Republican National Committeewoman from North Carolina from 2008 to 2020 – a role that involves being a liaison with the national party.

Advocacy group funds Jackson article

A story in the left-leaning publication Mother Jones generated chatter in political circles Monday. The article highlighted ties between Sen. Brent Jackson, R-Sampson, and tobacco company Reynolds American, focusing on a history of complaints and investigations about how Jackson’s Sampson County farm has treated its workers.

No debate in key congressional races

Speaking of debates, Friday’s event may have been one of only two televised debates in North Carolina this year. In the 11th congressional district, N.C. Sen. Chuck Edwards debated Democrat Jasmine Beach-Ferrara on Monday night, but I’m not aware of any others.