Life of the party: For Republican lawmakers, it’s, again, majority rules
by Sarah Michels, Carolina Public Press January 29, 2025
As lawmakers head into a legislative session where Republicans are one seat shy of a veto-proof supermajority, the job is simple. For Democrats, hold the line. For the GOP, convince just one person to cross it.
Overriding a governor’s veto requires three-fifths of each chamber. That’s 72 votes.
That’s why many eyes will be on the state House where Democrats have 49 seats and Republicans hold 71. That’s where it will be a numbers game.
No flipping
House Republicans are loyal, according to their voting records during the 2023-24 legislative session. Many rarely, if ever, broke from the party.
Meanwhile, the Democratic front was not so impenetrable. In the same session, 10 representatives voted with the Republican majority over 70% of the time. State Rep. Michael Wray was the top flipper, but lost in a primary last year. Two have since resigned. That now leaves seven in this session who may side with the GOP.
They are, in order from most likely to vote with the Republican majority to least likely, based on their 2023-24 voting record: Reps. Shelly Willingham (representing Bertie, Edgecombe and Martin counties); Carla Cunningham (Mecklenburg County); Garland Pierce (Hoke and Scotland counties); Cecil Brockman (Guilford County); Nasif Majeed (Mecklenburg County); Terry Brown Jr. (Mecklenburg County); and B. Ray Jeffers (Durham and Person counties).
These Democrats will face intense pressure from both sides of the aisle, according to High Point University political science professor Martin Kifer.
“It is such a crucial thing for the governor to have a veto that can stick as a negotiating point,” he said. “By the same token, there’ll be pressure on some Democrats who may be in tougher seats or have more of a record of working with Republicans to move over because being in the majority, and especially supermajority, can have benefits for them.”
Those benefits could include specific funding toward a lawmaker’s district, Kifer said. Or support for a program to help their constituents.
Having the ear of the majority can be powerful, and if lawmakers play their cards right, a ticket to reelection.
Lawmaker’s legacy
Former representative Tim Moore was the longest serving House Speaker in state history.
Moore has since moved on to the U.S. Congress. Now, Destin Hall, a 37-year-old politician who has never served in the minority party, will take over.
Chris Cooper, a political science professor at Western Carolina University, doubts that the policy preferences of the Republican caucus will shift under Hall, but thinks stylistic and protocol changes may have an impact.
“Moore’s power was so entrenched that there was no question leading into the session, not only who was formally in charge, but who was in charge behind the scenes, too,” Cooper said.
He wonders if Hall will be able to consolidate power in the same manner. The state House is historically harder to control than the Senate simply due to the greater number of lawmakers to wrangle.
Catawba College political science professor Michael Bitzer said he expects Hall to use Moore’s old playbook from the last time Republicans found themselves just shy of a supermajority.
That was in 2023. Moore tried to cut deals with small blocks of Democratic lawmakers, offering incentives in exchange for votes to override vetoes on certain pieces of legislation, Bitzer said.
Lawmakers who made the switch
After former representative Tricia Cotham switched her party affiliation to Republican in November 2023, it became easier for the GOP to block the vetoes of former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper.
With her addition, Republicans gained a supermajority in both chambers.
At the time of her switch, Cotham said the modern day Democratic Party had become “unrecognizable” to her, and she felt stifled by attempts to control her votes and “villainize” her for “free thought.” Last legislative session, she voted with the Republican majority 96% of the time.
Tensions are again high after one Democratic lawmaker, state Rep. Cecil Brockman of Guilford County, abstained from last session’s vote to override Cooper’s veto of Senate Bill 382. While publicized as a Helene relief bill, SB 382 mostly dealt with shifting power away from incoming Democratic Gov. Josh Stein.
Brockman caught flack from his party for missing the vote, which gave the Republican majority more wiggle room to override the veto 72-46.
In an open letter posted to social media, Brockman said he had been sick and was told the vote would likely be unanimous.
He also did not hold back in his criticism of the state Democratic party, who tried to primary him out of his seat based on his voting record.
“If I do not bend my knee to the establishment, I will continue to be portrayed as a villain. They’d rather convince my community that I am a villain to be scapegoated instead of acknowledging the reality that things are rarely black and white,” Brockman wrote.
He issued a clear warning to Democrats, reminiscent of Cotham’s 2023 switch.
“For those in our party who desire to keep my name in their mouths, let me make it plain and clear for you: Over these next two years, you need me. I do not need you,” Brockman said.
Western Carolina’s Cooper said it was easier for Cotham to switch parties and maintain her electoral success. The same is probably not true for Brockman.
“I think given the nature of his district, it’s a very Democratic district, it’s hard to imagine it ever being something else,” Cooper said. “I think he would be unlikely to formally switch because that would effectively be the end of his political career, whereas Cotham was able to switch and be drawn into a district that was at least competitive.”
Nonetheless, his voting record may still reflect his discontent with his party.
Lawmakers need to show up
Attendance records just got way more important.
Under the state constitution, the three-fifths threshold to override a veto is dependent on how many lawmakers show up. If the full, 120-member state House is present, it takes 72 votes to override a veto.
“If certain members aren’t present … that’s always an opportunity to sneak through a potential override,” Bitzer explained.
Still, according to Cooper, there’s some benefit to “taking a walk” and being absent rather than voting against your party. While both are on a lawmaker’s permanent voting record, one may be more excusable.
“People do have dentist appointments, and people do have doctor’s appointments and people’s kids get sick, people’s tires go out,” Cooper said. “There’s a lot of ways to explain later why you didn’t show up for something. If you cast a vote against it, then that one’s written in stone.”
SUMMARY: Donald van der Vaart, a former North Carolina environmental secretary and climate skeptic, has been appointed to the North Carolina Utilities Commission by Republican Treasurer Brad Briner. Van der Vaart, who previously supported offshore drilling and fracking, would oversee the state’s transition to renewable energy while regulating utility services. His appointment, which requires approval from the state House and Senate, has drawn opposition from environmental groups. Critics argue that his views contradict clean energy progress. The appointment follows a controversial bill passed by the legislature, granting the treasurer appointment power to the commission.
www.thecentersquare.com – By Alan Wooten | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-30 14:47:00
(The Center Square) – Called “crypto-friendly legislation” by the leader of the chamber, a proposal on digital assets on Wednesday afternoon passed the North Carolina House of Representatives.
Passage was 71-44 mostly along party lines.
The NC Digital Assets Investments Act, known also as House Bill 92, has investment requirements, caps and management, and clear definitions and standards aimed at making sure only qualified digital assets are included. House Speaker Destin Hall, R-Caldwell, said the state would potentially join more than a dozen others with “crypto-friendly legislation.”
With him in sponsorship are Reps. Stephen Ross, R-Alamance, Mark Brody, R-Union, and Mike Schietzelt, R-Wake.
Nationally last year, the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act – known as FIT21 – passed through the U.S. House in May and in September was parked in the Senate’s Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.
Dan Spuller, cochairman of the North Carolina Blockchain Initiative, said the state has proven a leader on digital asset policy. That includes the Money Transmitters Act of 2016, the North Carolina Regulatory Sandbox Act of 2021, and last year’s No Centrl Bank Digital Currency Pmts to State. The latter was strongly opposed by Gov. Roy Cooper, so much so that passage votes of 109-4 in the House and 39-5 in the Senate slipped back to override votes, respectively, of 73-41 and 27-17.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Centrist
The article presents a factual report on the passage of the NC Digital Assets Investments Act, highlighting the legislative process, party-line votes, and related legislative measures. It does not adopt a clear ideological stance or frame the legislation in a way that suggests bias. Instead, it provides neutral information on the bill, its sponsors, and relevant background on state legislative activity in digital asset policy. The tone and language remain objective, focusing on legislative facts rather than promoting a particular viewpoint.
www.thecentersquare.com – By Alan Wooten | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-30 11:04:00
(The Center Square) – Hurricane Helene recovery in North Carolina is being impacted by a federal agency with seven consecutive failed audits and the elimination of hundreds of its workers in the state.
Democratic Attorney General Jeff Jackson joined a lawsuit on behalf of the state with 23 other states and the District of Columbia against AmeriCorps, known also as the Corporation for National and Community Service. The state’s top prosecutor says eight of 19 AmeriCorps programs and 202 jobs are being lost in the state by the cuts to the federal program.
Jeff Jackson, North Carolina attorney general
NCDOJ.gov
The litigation says responsibility lies with the Department of Government Efficiency established by President Donald Trump.
“These funds – which Congress already appropriated for North Carolina – are creating jobs, cleaning up storm damage, and helping families rebuild,” Jackson said. “AmeriCorps must follow the law so that people in western North Carolina can confidently move forward.”
Jackson, in a release, said 50 of the 750 volunteers terminated on April 15 were in North Carolina. Three programs with 84 people employed were impacted on Friday when AmeriCorps cut federal funds to grant programs that run through the North Carolina Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service.
Project MARS was helping in 18 western counties, providing supplies and meals to homebound and stranded families. Clothing, crisis hotlines and school supports were also aided. Project Conserve was in 25 western counties helping with debris removal, tree replanting, storm-system repairs and rain-barrel distribution. Project POWER helped large-scale food donations for more than 10,000 people in the hard-hit counties of Buncombe, Henderson and Madison.
The White House has defended its accountability actions and did so on this move. AmeriCorps has a budget of about $1 billion.
Helene killed 107 in North Carolina and caused an estimated $60 billion damage.
The storm made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane in Dekle Beach, Fla., on Sept. 26. It dissipated over the mountains of the state and Tennessee, dropping more than 30 inches in some places and over 24 consistently across more.
U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., said last year AmeriCorps has a legacy of “incompetence and total disregard for taxpayer money.” She was chairwoman of the House Committee on Education and Workforce, which requested the report showing repeated failed audits and financial management troubles.
“AmeriCorps,” Foxx said, “receives an astounding $1 billion in taxpayer funds every year but hasn’t received a clean audit for the past seven years. As instances of fraud continue, the agency has proven time and time again incapable of reforming itself and should never be given another opportunity to abuse taxpayer dollars.”
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Center-Right
The article presents an ideological stance that leans toward the right, particularly in its portrayal of AmeriCorps, a federal agency, and its financial mismanagement. The language used to describe the agency’s struggles with audits, financial troubles, and alleged incompetence reflects a critical perspective typically associated with conservative viewpoints, especially through the quote from Republican Rep. Virginia Foxx. Additionally, the inclusion of comments from North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson and other Democratic officials highlights a contrast in political positions. However, the article itself primarily reports on legal actions and the consequences of funding cuts without pushing a clear partisan agenda, thus maintaining a degree of neutrality in reporting factual details of the case.
