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Weekend reads: In a battleground state, it all comes down to voter turnout

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Weekend reads: In a battleground state, it all comes down to voter turnout

Nov 03, 2024 | 9:26 am ET
By Clayton Henkel
Weekend reads: In a battleground state, it all comes down to voter turnout
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Voters make selections at their voting booths inside an early voting site on Oct. 17, 2024 in Hendersonville, North Carolina. (Photo by Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images)

Editor’s note: The general election is finally here — Tuesday, Nov. 5th. Polling places will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Voters can find their polling place and sample ballot here.

The following is a collection of NC Newsline stories from the final week of the long campaign season.

Harris ignites enthusiasm in Raleigh as presidential contest comes down to the wire

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris greets supporters
Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris greets supporters during a rally at Walnut Creek Amphitheatre on October 30 in Raleigh. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

By Christine Zhu

It’s likely the vice president’s next-to-last visit to North Carolina prior to Election Day.

RALEIGH — Lynnette Johnson of Raleigh works four jobs, but she still stays up until 3:30 a.m. at times to make wood flowers that she’s donating to the Harris-Walz campaign as a sign of unity.

Johnson has given the pieces of art to the mayors of Raleigh and Durham, as well as North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper. She gave a red, white, and blue flower to the Secret Service with the hopes that Vice President Kamala Harris will receive the gift and wear it on election night. [Read more...]

Bonus reads:

In Rocky Mount, Trump tries to turn the table on “garbage” remarks

Weekend reads: In a battleground state, it all comes down to voter turnout
Supporters listen to Republican presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump as he speaks during a campaign event in Rocky Mount on Oct. 30, 2024. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

By Brandon Kingdollar 

Reeling from days of backlash over his Madison Square Garden rally, former President Donald Trump went on the offensive in a speech at Rocky Mount, railing against remarks by President Joe Biden in which it appeared to some that he called Trump supporters “garbage.”

“Joe Biden finally said what he and Kamala really think of our supporters,” Trump said, drawing a chorus of boos from the crowd of about 4,000. “He called them garbage.” [Read more]

Bonus read:

NC Appeals Court rejects GOP attempt to block some overseas voters

Absentee ballot being handled by an employee of the Wake County Board of Elections. (Photo by Allison Joyce/Getty Images)
Absentee ballot being handled by an employee of the Wake County Board of Elections. (Photo by Allison Joyce/Getty Images)

By: Lynn Bonner 

The state Court of Appeals on Monday turned back Republicans’ attempt to have the state set aside ballots from some citizens living overseas and reject some of their registration forms.

In doing so, the Appeals Court upheld a trial court judge’s decision denying Republicans’ request for a restraining order. [Read more…]

 

Stein raises $44.6M in NC governor’s race, 11 times more than Robinson

Josh Stein and Mark Robinson
Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein (L) and Lt. Governor Mark Robinson (R) (File photos)

By Christine Zhu 

The third quarter spans the period between July 1 and Oct. 19.

Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein raised 11 times as much as his Republican opponent Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson in the North Carolina gubernatorial contest during the third quarter, according to the latest campaign finance reports.

Stein received $44.6 million in the fundraising period between July 1 and Oct. 19 while Robinson brought in about $4 million. Reports for the third quarter were due earlier this week.[Read more…]

Swing state groups warn mass deportation will hurt economy, separate a third of Latino families

a Trump supporter holds sign saying "mass deportation now"
Trump’s mass deportation proposal would not just “rip apart one in three Latino families” but also could “destabilize our economy,” Latino groups warn. (Photo: Leon Neal/Getty Images)

By: Michael Lyle

Latino organizers in battleground states warned former President Donald Trump’s plan for mass deportation could put an estimated one in three Latino families at risk of separation and “destabilize our economy.”

With less than a week before Election Day, Latino groups nationwide hosted a virtual call on Tuesday to rebuke Trump’s immigration policies as well as proposals outlined in Project 2025.

Recent data from the bipartisan political advocacy and research group Fwd.US projects that one in 12 total U.S. residents, and nearly one in three Latinos, are at risk of deportation and family separation under Trump’s proposals.[Read more...]

Affordable housing bonds totaling $165M on the ballot in four NC towns and cities

a row of townhomes
Four North Carolina cities and towns will vote on housing bond proposals in the 2024 general election. (Photo: Clayton Henkel)

By: Greg Childress

Voters in at least four North Carolina cities and towns will be asked to approve affordable housing bonds totaling $165 million in this year’s general election.

In Charlotte, voters have been asked to approve a $100 million housing bond the majority of which—$35 million—will go toward producing rental housing. The bond ask doubles the $50 million housing bond Charlotte voters approved in 2022. [Read more…]

 

NC lawmakers look to Congress for additional Helene relief, but action unlikely before mid-November

aerial photo of storm damage
An aerial view of gas being burned off near overturned tank cars amid flood damage wrought by Hurricane Helene along the Swannanoa River on Oct. 4, 2024 in Asheville. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

By Galen Bacharier 

Lawmakers in North Carolina have laid out $877 million in state aid for Hurricane Helene recovery in the mountains — an effort many are hoping will be bolstered by help from Capitol Hill.

“This will be a major amount of the pressure that we have got to put on the U.S. Congress,” Sen. Ralph Hise (R-Mitchell) said on the floor of the state Senate last week. “To make sure that we can have the resources necessary to allow western North Carolina to rebuild itself.” [Read more]

 

In the Hurricane Helene response, signs of hope and lunacy at a fraught moment (commentary)

North Carolina Air National Guard hauls over 100,000 pounds of supplies
North Carolina Air National Guard hauls over 100,000 pounds of supplies from the Federal Emergency Management Agency in a C17 to Western North Carolina as a part of Hurricane Helene support. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Maj. Monica Ebert)

By Rob Schofield

In a political year in which a steady stream of good and hopeful news and policy progress has been accompanied by a relentless drumbeat of disinformation and delusion, it’s unsurprising that one of the year’s biggest events and news stories – Hurricane Helene – has produced just such a maddening combination of late in North Carolina.

The encouraging news, of course, is to be found in the response we’ve seen from elected leaders, public officials and average citizens of all political stripes. [Read more]