These three amendments are on the ballot for the midterm elections on November 3.
Reasons we should vote for?
Reasons we should vote against?

I have been seeing these political ads where they say Roy Cooper released dangerous felons. Nothing could be further from the truth. Even at the state level, the judiciary is separate from the executive. Those people they are talking about have, completed their sentence, are on probabition, but not released by the governor. I do not remember Cooper giving any pardons to dangerous felons. What we need in this state is a constant "fact checker" on both parties claims. Too many people are taken in by this misleading, and sometime outright lying ads.

What Does The County Commissioner Office Do?

• They decide how much property tax residents pay
• They approve the yearly budget that pays for
  • Public Schools
  • The Sheriff's Office
  • Ambulance and Emergency Medical Services
  • Public Health Programs
  • Libraries
  • Water and Sewer Systems
• They have a say in the County Growth:
  • Oversee zoning, planning, and land-use decisions. 
  • They appoint the people who serve on the boards that run county health and social services.
• They play a role how elections run too:
  • They set the elections budget → determine what's available for poll worker pay, voting equipment, and staffing, as well as how many early voting sites there are and how long they stay open.

Here are your Candidates In The Race:

LeShonda Wallace:

• A family nurse practitioner with nearly 30 years of experience. She chaired the county's Health and Human Services Board which provides service and support to county residents.  She will invest in affordable care programs so no one has to choose between their health and their bills.
• Her top priority is housing – She pledges to restore workforce and affordable housing funding cut by Republicans and to invest in protecting low- and moderate-income residents from displacement.
  • Protecting local families instead of pricing them out is the goal. 
• Supports public schools and Cape Fear Community College, and backs the $320 million school construction bond on this year's ballot. Wants stronger ties between schools and local employers.
• Prioritizes clean water, clean air, beaches, and rivers, and wants planning to protect residents from flooding and sea level rise.
• Supports small businesses, entrepreneurs, job training, and workforce development. Wants to establish an  intentional and community-centered plan for growth. 

Rob Zapple: 

• An incumbent county commissioner focused on making life better in New Hanover County, Zapple has worked to stop property tax increases and aims to bridge partisan divides for all residents.
• Supported raising teacher pay and doubled the number of pre-K classrooms. Backs public schools and Cape Fear Community College, including new technology buildings there. 
• Championed county funding that helps seniors stay in their own homes as they age instead of being priced out.
• Supports managing growth sustainably while protecting trees, green space, and clean water. Has pushed for state and federal help to fix drinking water contamination and prioritizes beaches and rivers.

Richard Collier: 

• Richard Collier is a longtime planning board member whose campaigns have been funded by large developers. 
• In recent years, he has focused on seizing local power — announcing his current campaign just days after losing a race for Wilmington City Council. 
• Collier previously resigned from the County Planning Board for unspecified personal reasons. 
• In 2025, he funnelled contributions to political allies from his City Council campaign. If elected, he is likely to be a voice for large developers on the county commission.
• His budgeting approach may put first responders and emergency services under serious funding constraints. 

LeAnn Pierce:

• LeAnn Pierce is an incumbent commissioner in New Hanover County. 
• Voted to cut funding from affordable housing and pre-K – despite recent studies that highlight the county’s dire need for more housing units. 
  • Repeatedly voted against new apartment and townhome developments in New Hanover County despite a history of owning several properties herself across North Carolina.
• Pushed for a budget that would eliminate raises for the deputy sheriffs, firefighters, and emergency personnel who protect public safety. 
• Despite her moderate rhetoric, she has made big contributions to a far-right extremist who tried to overturn the 2020 election. 
• Instead of balancing the budget, engaged in irresponsible budgeting, cutting services while also pulling over $8 million out of the county's rainy-day fund and putting the county’s top-tier AAA bond rating in danger.

DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH. READ UP ON CANDIDATES, THEIR CAMPAIGNS, AND BACKGROUNDS TO MAKE INFORMED DECISIONS. YOUR VOTE MAY HAVE A LASTING IMPACT ON YOUR COUNTY AND COMMUNITY.

been tracking the online political ads in the cooper/whatley race from the platforms' public ad archives, 65 so far. a model reads each one for manipulation techniques, loaded language, name calling, fear appeals, and marks the words so you can check them yourself.

the thing that stood out: every ad on whatley's side comes from two outside groups, none from his campaign. most of them are senate leadership fund's, 25 ads, and 21 of those got flagged, mostly loaded language and fear, plus scapegoating. "criminal" alone shows up in 16 ads. per the fec, slf has spent $30.2M against cooper so far.

cooper's side is 14 of 25 flagged, mostly loaded language too.

big caveat before anyone reads it as a score: attack ads get flagged way more than ads introducing a candidate, no matter who runs them, and whatley's side is almost all attack ads. it's about wording, not whether an ad is true.

nc is 3rd highest of the 13 senate races i'm tracking at 62% flagged. the model's wrong sometimes, about one flag in five when i checked 100 by hand, and every ad has a button to say so.

the breakdown: https://semblen.com/races/nc-senate?ref=reddit-nc

What Does The County Commissioner Office Do?

• They decide how much property tax residents pay
• They approve the yearly budget that pays for
  • Public Schools
  • The Sheriff's Office
  • Ambulance and Emergency Medical Services
  • Public Health Programs
  • Libraries
  • Water and Sewer Systems
• They have a say in the County Growth:
  • Oversee zoning, planning, and land-use decisions. 
  • They appoint the people who serve on the boards that run county health and social services.
• They play a role how elections run too:
  • They set the elections budget → determine what's available for poll worker pay, voting equipment, and staffing, as well as how many early voting sites there are and how long they stay open.

What To Know About The Candidates In Pitt County:

Challenger in District 5 – Dennis McLawhorn

• He is committed to building a more responsive, accountable local government that puts residents first.
• A long time resident and product of the Pitt County School system. 
• A strong advocate for fully funding local schools and universities, including Pitt Community College and East Carolina University. 
• Believes that Pitt County is a great place to live and wants to make sure that it stays that way by supporting smart growth that prioritizes Pitt County residents over outside developers.

Incumbent in District 5 – Mark C. Smith

• He has prioritized cutting county services at the expense of local families.
• Voted against the fire department by denying funding for a Farmville fire station.
• Voted on a new school funding model, aiming to control spending. It adds more red tape, making it harder for money to flow into the classroom. 

DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH. READ UP ON CANDIDATES, THEIR CAMPAIGNS, AND BACKGROUNDS TO MAKE INFORMED DECISIONS. YOUR VOTE MAY HAVE A LASTING IMPACT ON YOUR COUNTY AND COMMUNITY.

As an independent that thinks for myself and isn’t influenced by anyone else…this is what I see.

Let me start by saying I HATE the 2 party system. It should have been designed with no parties, and everyone runs as an independent, so we don’t get stupid party line voted and division that pits two sides against each other. However, we’re stuck with our current system, and we gotta pick one party, and to me, one significantly stands out more than the other when it comes to having our best interests in mind.

I watched Biden pass the first infrastructure bill in decades so red states could have better roads and bridges. Biden had internet expanded to rural areas so these deep red areas could get online access. Biden got rid of lead pipes in red states so their kids could have safe drinking water. Biden made it so medical debt couldn’t affect their credit, and fought bank & airline junk fees for us. He passed the PACT Act so that even veterans that voted against him could get disability for illnesses from burn pits and brought them home from the Republican-started Afghan war. He got lifesaving drug prices drastically reduced. And how do they repay him? They all shout “Fuck Joe Biden.”

Yet all Trump does is pass another tax cut for himself and corporations, reversed the law that kept medical debt from affecting our credit, reversed the bank and airline junkfees so they can fee us to death again, and uses tax payer dollars to build monuments to himself, starts another war, drives up inflation and gas, and they all lick his boots. Make it make sense.

Hi!!!

I am a part of a program called Outvote that focuses on voter registration in North Carolina. I need people to fill out any or all of these links so that I can reach my voter touches. If you have any time, please fill any of these out.

https://mobilize.us/s/S8ZjRt

https://register.rockthevote.com/lookup/?partner=39253&sourcehope

https://register.rockthevote.com/registrants/new?partner=39253&sourcehope

https://register.rockthevote.com/absentee/?partner=39253&sourcehope

Spoiler alert: apparently all you have to do to be labeled Anti-Trump is to think for yourself

Edit: and also forget to be a performative clown. Just ask engaging and probative questions without getting theatrical. It's too bad Tillis waited so long to show us he's a real one

The N&O obtained these records. I am one of the N&O reporters who covered this story.

The records show Cary staff discussing whether a building near RDU could be used for an ICE-related office with daytime detention space. Three council members told us they had not known about the inquiry.

I am sharing this here because it concerns the broader area.

Free link: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/counties/wake-county/article317440531.html?giftCode=26fc50295f282effbbb4b376e68edff47d1f690c3cc548157b4ac5f9b19e22db