Compared to contemporaries across the country, North Carolina's governor has relatively little power.
As Western Carolina University Professor Chris Cooper wrote in the Old North State Politics blog in 2023: “In 1776, a delegate to the North Carolina constitutional convention noted that the original state constitution gave the Governor ‘just enough power to sign the receipt for his own salary.’” Cooper notes that, though that constitution has since changed, the sentiment regarding gubernatorial power remains largely the same.
In recent months, North Carolina’s Republican-majority General Assembly has made moves to take power away from newly-elected Democratic Gov. Josh Stein. Following the November election, Republicans fast-tracked legislation that took away Stein’s power to appoint the state elections board and gave that power to the state auditor, Republican Dave Boliek. Efforts have also been taken to limit the power of Attorney General Jeff Jackson and state Superintendent of Public Instruction Mo Green.
While legal questions remain, we break down the ramifications for the future of our elections and how North Carolina government operates.
GUESTS:
Bryan Anderson, Anderson Alerts Substack Newsletter author and freelance journalist covering North Carolina politics
Colin Campbell, capitol bureau chief and political reporter for WUNC
Chris Cooper, director of the Haire Institute for Public Policy at Western Carolina University and author of “Anatomy of a Purple State: A North Carolina Politics Primer”
