One of the challenges of being a swing state is that presidential campaigns tend to suck up a lot of attention in North Carolina 鈥� to the detriment of other important statewide races on the ballot that don鈥檛 get as much coverage. In an ongoing series, we鈥檒l break down the statewide races here, on the 瓜神app Politics Podcast, and in the 瓜神app Politics 瓜神appletter.
With Roy Cooper term-limited, North Carolina will get a new governor this year.
After easy victories in the primaries, Democrat Josh Stein and Republican Mark Robinson are the major party candidates seeking to become the 76th governor of the Tar Heel State.
What does the Governor do?
The North Carolina governor than almost any other governor in the country. The governor鈥檚 power hinges largely on her or his party affiliation, and which party controls the North Carolina General Assembly. The governor only got veto power in 1996, but that did not extend to a line-item veto 鈥� one of just six states where that is the case.
With a recent veto-proof Republican majority in the General Assembly, Cooper, a Democrat, has had even less power exercising his limited veto powers on legislation he does not like 鈥� such as increased voucher funding for private schools and abortion restrictions. The legislature has also restricted and altered the governor鈥檚 appointment powers in recent years, further restricting influence.
The governor can grant pardons, convene extraordinary sessions of the legislature, and runs Council of State meetings.
Who is Josh Stein?
Stein, 58, is the current Attorney General. He was elected to the post in 2016 and re-elected in 2020, winning both races by less than one percentage point.
Prior to that, he served in the state senate for eight years. He grew up in Chapel Hill, where his father co-founded the state鈥檚 first integrated law firm. He attended Dartmouth College and got his law degree from Harvard University.
During his campaign, Stein has pointed to his efforts to eliminate the state鈥檚 backlog of rape cases and negotiating a settlement over the opioid epidemic. He supports a woman鈥檚 right to choose, increasing access to health care, and housing affordability. His opponents attack him for being 鈥�.鈥�
Who is Mark Robinson?
Robinson, 56, is a former furniture factory worker, a graduate of UNC-Greensboro, and the current lieutenant governor. He was elected in 2020 after a video of him speaking out against gun control to the Greensboro City Council went viral and greatly enhanced his profile. He was endorsed for governor by Donald Trump in March, which allowed him to win the Republican primary by more than 40 points.
As a private citizen, Robinson was a voluminous poster to social media. He on Facebook, was critical of the Civil Rights movement, and homosexuality a sin.
As a candidate, he has continued to , called climate change 鈥溾��, and said that once a woman gets pregnant it鈥檚 鈥�.鈥�
Robinson is opposed to abortion rights, and previously stated his support for a complete ban before changing his official position to agreeing with the state鈥檚 current 12-week ban. He has also to paying for his wife to get an abortion, before they were married.
Recent reporting has uncovered that Robinson鈥檚 family non-profit had to pay back $132,000 in federal funding for being 鈥渟eriously deficient鈥�, that he in the 1990s and 2000s, and that he posted to the online adult website NudeAfrica that he was a 鈥淏lack Nazi鈥� and expressed support for reinstating slavery. Trump and other prominent Republicans have since distanced themselves from Robinson.
Robinson鈥檚 policy positions focus on providing more educational options for students and families, standing up for law enforcement, and promoting cryptocurrencies.
Three other candidates are also on the ballot: Vinny Smith (Constitution Party), Wayne Turner (Green Party, and Mike Ross (Libertarian).
For more on Josh Stein, Mark Robinson and the North Carolina Governor's race in 2024, read and subscribe to and listen to full conversations with them on .
