VOLUME 10 ISSUE 37 | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2025
NSJONLINE.COM
J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE / AP PHOTO
Bishop William Barber, pictured protesting President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill in Washington, D.C., in June, plans to organize rallies in Raleigh in response to the redrawing of the state’s congressional map.
Legal challenge filed over new election maps
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BRIEF this week
Dick Cheney, VP under Bush, dead at 84 Washington, D.C. Dick Cheney, the hard-charging conservative who became one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents in U.S. history and a leading advocate for the invasion of Iraq, has died at 84. George W. Bush’s vice president died Monday from complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease, his family said Tuesday in a statement. A survivor of five heart attacks, Cheney long thought he was living on borrowed time and declared in 2013 that he awoke each morning “with a smile on my face, thankful for the gift of another day.”
Duffy warns of “mass chaos” in skies if shutdown continues Washington, D.C. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted Tuesday that there could be chaos in the skies next week if the government shutdown drags on and air traffic controllers miss a second paycheck. There have already been numerous delays at airports across the country — sometimes hours long — because the Federal Aviation Administration slows down or stops traffic temporarily anytime it is short on controllers. Last weekend saw some of the worst staff shortages, and on Sunday, flights at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey were delayed for several hours. Duffy and the head of the air traffic controllers union have both warned that the situation will only get worse the longer the shutdown continues and the financial pressure continues to grow on people who are forced to work without pay. FAA employees already missed one paycheck on Oct. 28. Their next payday is scheduled for next Tuesday.
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Many of the plaintiffs are the same who brought an existing 2023 federal redistricting lawsuit
NCGOP refers ‘cash-for-votes’ to Elections board The report claims a text message offered $100 for voting for Democrats running for the Wilmington City County By A.P. Dillon North State Journal RALEIGH — The North Carolina Republican Party has referred evidence of potential “cash-for-votes” to the State Board of Elections for investigation. The North Carolina Republican Party (NCGOP) said in a
press release it was made “aware of this alleged scheme appearing to monetarily solicit votes for three Democratic candidates for Wilmington City Council.” “A registered voter in New Hanover County has alleged they had received text messages indicating they would be compensated by three Democratic City Council Candidates in exchange for their vote,” the press release stated. The press release included redacted images of the text messages, alluding to a prior See NCSBE, page A3
By A.P. Dillon North State Journal RALEIGH — A legal challenge has been filed against North Carolina’s new congressional maps contained in Senate Bill 249, which was passed by the legislature Oct. 22. The new maps create the opportunity for the Republican Party to gain another seat in Congress and hold 11 of the state’s 14 districts. Districts 1 and 3 — currently held by Rep. Don Davis (D-Snow Hill) and Greg Murphy (R-Greenville), respectively — were altered. The lawsuit, Williams v. Blackwell, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina on Oct. 23. It was brought by eight North Carolina residents in the two redrawn districts along with a dozen other individuals residing in counties outside the two affected districts. The plaintiffs are represented by the Elias Law Group, which has offices in Wash-
Internal control review contract for WS/FCS OK’d by Board of Education A contract for an accounting firm totaling more than $97,000 was unanimously approved By A.P. Dillon North State Journal RALEIGH — The North Carolina State Board of Education unanimously approved an internal controls review contract involving Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools during a special called meeting last Monday. The accounting firm of Mauldin & Jenkins was selected to perform the six-month review of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools (WS/ FCS). The contract’s total value is listed as $97,770, and a report is due by
Dec. 31 and a public presentation by Feb. 15, 2026. The request for proposal for the review states two goals: to independently evaluate whether WS/FCS’s current controls, including any newly implemented controls and policies, are effective and sustainable, and to ensure that current controls and corrective measures implemented effectively address past deficiencies and prevent recurrences. The internal controls review stems from WS/FCS’s nearly $46 million budget deficit for fiscal year 2025, as reported by the North Carolina Office of the State Auditor (OSA). The OSA’s Rapid Response Report detailed seven major areas of concern that See WSFCS, page A2
ington, D.C., and Seattle, as well as attorneys with Patterson Harkavy LLP, which has offices in Chapel Hill and Greensboro. The Elias Law Group’s founder is Marc Elias, a former lawyer for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign. Elias has filed multiple past election lawsuits in North Carolina, including one loosening absentee ballot rules and a 2020 consent order that lawmakers labeled as a “collusive settlement agreement.” Republicans later filed legislation blocking future such settlements, which ended in a veto by former Gov. Roy Cooper. Defendants named in the lawsuit include House Elections Committee Co-chairs Reps. Hugh Blackwell (R-Burke) and Sarah Stevens (R-Surry), Senate Elections Committee Co-chairs Sens. Ralph Hise (R-Mitchell) and Brad Overcash (R-Gaston), as well as House Speaker Destin Hall (R-Granite Falls), Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Eden) and the members of the State Board of Elections. The lawsuit seeks declaratory and injunctive relief, alleging See MAPS, page A8