VOLUME 9 ISSUE 3
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WWW.NSJONLINE.COM
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2024
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BRIEF this week
Simmons aims to succeed Whatley at NCGOP Raleigh Jason Simmons, executive director of the North Carolina Republican Party, has declared his candidacy to replace Michael Whatley as NCGOP chairman. Simmons joined NCGOP following the 2020 election after serving on Donald Trump’s presidential campaigns in 2016 and 2020. Whatley left the role last week after being handpicked by Trump to serve as chairman of the Republican National Committee. Trump’s daughter-in-law, Wilmington native Lara Trump, was named cochair. U.S. Sen. Ted Budd has already endorsed Simmons for the position, and the NCGOP executive committee will vote on March 26. No other candidates have yet emerged for the position.
RNC fires 60 staffers Washington, D.C. Just days after taking over at the Republican National Committee, Michael Whatley and Lara Trump cut dozens of staff as former president Donald Trump reimagines the GOP’s political and fundraising machinery, The Associated Press reported. More than 60 people were fired in all, including senior staff in the political, data and communications departments inside the committee’s Washington headquarters. The cuts also included staff that ran the committee’s celebrated community centers, which were focused on building relationships with minority groups in some Democraticleaning states. The overhaul was confirmed by multiple people with direct knowledge of the cuts who told the AP on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the moves publicly. The Republican National Committee members approved former NCGOP chairman Whatley and the former president’s daughterin-law for the RNC’s top two positions. Whatley replaced Ronna McDaniel as the chair. The cuts are designed to eliminate duplication as the Trump campaign and the RNC work to become essentially one organization, said Chris LaCivita, a Trump campaign senior adviser who took over as the RNC chief of staff after Friday’s vote. Staffers were notified of the cuts in an email Monday afternoon from the committee’s new chief operating officer, Sean Cairncross, who offered people an opportunity to reapply for their jobs.
PJ WARD-BROWN | NORTH STATE JOURNAL
Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, right, greets his supporters with his wife, Yolanda, during his primary election party last Tuesday at the Koury Convention Center Sheraton in Greensboro. Robinson won the Republican nomination for governor and will face Attorney General Josh Stein in the general election.
NC gubernatorial race between Stein, Robinson The state’s attorney general and lieutenant governor will face off in November after easily winning their primaries
Winners, losers, runoffs in congressional races Two primary contests are headed to May 14 runoffs By A.P. Dillon North State Journal RALEIGH — Incumbents came out on top by strong margins while races with multiple candidates were much tighter in the North Carolina March 5 congressional primaries. With five seats in Congress open this year, certain races had multiple Republicans vying for a spot. Democrats Jeff Jackson, Kathy Manning, and Wiley Nickel opted not to run again for their seats following congressional map redistricting. Republican U.S. Reps. Patrick McHenry and Dan Bishop also decided not to run for reelection. McHenry retired, while Bishop opted to run for state attorney general — as did Jackson, who secured the Democratic nomination in his primary race. Bishop had no Republican primary challenger.
In contrast to the maps crafted by state judges for the 2022 elections, which saw Democrats and Republicans each getting seven congressional seats, the current maps suggest a high probability of the GOP securing at least 10 of the 14 seats. Two races ended up in a runoff — Districts 6 and 13. The runoff election date is set for May 14. The results will not be official until after the 10-day canvass period is completed. Overseas and military ballots returned by the deadline won’t be added to the mix until the canvass period after county boards of election have approved them. Voter turnout this year was lower than that of the last primary held during a presidential election year despite over a half-million more registered voters on the rolls. Across the state’s 2,600 polling places, 1,790,838 ballots were cast out of a possible See CONGRESSIONAL, page A2
By A.P. Dillon North State Journal RALEIGH — The North Carolina governor’s race matchup has been decided: Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson and Attorney General Josh Stein will face off in the November general election. Republican Mark Robinson, the first black man to serve as lieutenant governor in the state, cruised to a win with an unofficial vote tally of 663,917, or more than 64%. Both of Robinson’s primary opponents finished far behind — State Treasurer Dale Folwell had just over 19% of the vote, and businessman Bill Graham finished with 16%. Former President Donald Trump endorsed Robinson’s bid for governor at a campaign rally in Greensboro the weekend before the Super Tuesday election. Both the NCGOP and Chairman Michael Whatley praised Robinson’s win. The NCGOP, in a post on X, called
Greensboro child migrant facility officially operational March 15 While “operational,” the facility will not house children on that date By A.P. Dillon North State Journal
PJ WARD-BROWN | NORTH STATE JOURNAL
Addison McDowell, pictured at the Donald Trump rally in Greensboro on March 2, will face former U.S. Rep. Mark Walker in the May 14 runoff for the right to represent North Carolina’s 6th District in Congress since no one entered the Democratic primary.
Robinson’s win a “historic victory,” and a “man of the people, not the elites.” Stein, currently in his second term as North Carolina’s attorney general, defeated the four other challengers with just under 70% of the vote with an unofficial 476,448 votes. Stein’s win was met with congratulatory posts on social media, including a post on X by Gov. Roy Cooper that read, “The work starts now. Let’s come together and do all we can to elect @JoshStein_ as our next Governor.” North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Clayton Anderson congratulated Stein in a statement that read, in part, “As Governor, he will continue delivering for North Carolinians to build a North Carolina with strong public schools, safe communities, and economic opportunity for every person.” Turnout across the state was lower this presidential election year cycle than it was in 2020 despite the state having more registered voters this year. Unofficial results show a ballot cast rate of 24.02%. That translates to 1,790,838 out of 7,456,236 possible votes. In 2020, the rate was 31.19% or 2,164,731 votes cast out of 6,940,995 possible votes.
RALEIGH — The Greensboro Influx Care Facility (ICF) for unaccompanied minor children will be operational soon, per a post by Greensboro Mayor Nancy Vaughn on the social media platform X. “Today we were notified that the Greensboro Children’s Center will be operational on March 15th,” Vaughn wrote in a March 1 post. “This means the Greensboro Children’s Center will be ready to house children.
It is important to note that no children will be placed at the facility at this time.” Vaughn’s X post and formal statement follow a March 1 press release by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement (DHS ORR) that says the agency “is working diligently with its interagency See FACILITY, page A8
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