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Volunteers, staff and prospective candidates worked to secure thousands of signatures so that the Green Party would have a spot on the 2022 North Carolina ballot. However, a couple of hundred of signatures were deemed fraudulent. And last week the state Board of Elections voted not to certify the party. On this episode of The Politics Podcast, Green Party member Matthew Hoh discusses how this happened and the challenges of a political system dominated by two parties.

This week in state politics, legislators debate a spending plan that sets aside billions, provides raises, and seeks to weather an inflation storm. Meanwhile, at the U.S. Supreme Court, four justices agreed to hear a challenge related to the independence – and unchecked power – of state legislatures. In our Friday review, Donna King of the conservative Carolina Journal and Rob Schofield from the progressive NC Policy Watch review.

Republican legislative leaders have come to a budget deal. The nearly $28 billion proposal is expected to receive bipartisan backing by the end of the week. However, it does not include Medicaid Expansion, likely leaving the Governor less than thrilled. Meanwhile the General Assembly short session is nearing a conclusion. WRAL Statehouse reporter Travis Fain stops by size up the session, and talk about some pieces of legislation that are going nowhere.

It was a busy week in Raleigh and on Capitol Hill. The NC General Assembly failed to advance a sports gambling measure, or some to any agreement on Medicaid expansion. Meanwhile the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a century-old gun law out of New York, as U.S. Senators approved a narrow set of gun reforms. Rob Schofield and Clark Riemer discuss in our weekly politics review. Note: this segment was recorded prior to the SCOTUS ruling ending the constitutional right to abortion

State lawmakers are considering two bills that would legalize mobile sports gambling across the state. If the measures become law it would put North Carolina in line with nearly two dozen other states, and potentially generate a few billion dollars in annual revenue. Still, it remains unclear if a deal will be brokered in the final weeks of the legislative session.

Tim Boyum has reported on North Carolina Politics for 20 years. He hosts a nightly TV program as well as a weekly podcast. Boyum discusses how he approaches a busy slate, overcoming some mental health challenges, and one exhilarating recent reporting trip, on this episode of The Politics Podcast from WUNC During the conversation Boyum discusses Frying Pan Tower, off the coast of North Carolina. You can learn more about his recent TV special here: https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nc/triangle-sandhills/politics/2022/05/04/preserving-frying-pan-tower-

State Senators were busy in recent days as they approved several high-profile pieces of legislation. Meanwhile an environmental proposal filed in the House would punish corporations for dumping forever chemicals into watersheds. Yet it’s unclear if any of these bills will soon become law. Mitch Kokai from the John Locke Foundation and Rob Schofield with NC Policy Watch help review the week in state politics.

State senators have given approval to a plan that would expand Medicaid in North Carolina to some 600,000 people. North Carolina is just one of just 12 states that has yet to expand the federal health care program, which is administered by state agencies. The proposed expansion signals a major shift from some Republicans. The bill includes some notable provisions that are tangential to Medicaid. On this episode of The Politics Podcast, Jason deBruyn offers analysis on what the bill seeks to do, and the impacts it could have.

Following another heart-breaking massacre came the latest reminder of a fractured political infrastructure. While nineteen children were murdered at an Elementary school in Uvalde, Texas it appears that policy changes in Raleigh, or Washington, remain a long shot. Meanwhile, the state’s most powerful politician does a major about face on Medicaid expansion. Rob Schofield and Donna King discuss the two significant stories from the week.

With the May primary complete, focus is turning toward November. There are efforts to engage and mobilize form both major political parties. However, Leslie Mac believe the Democratic party can do more to build relationships with new North Carolinians, Women of Color, and rural progressives.

The May Primary marked a significant end for two well known conservatives. Meanwhile, strong turnout was seen in several gerrymandered Congressional districts. And the General Assembly returns to Raleigh for its short session. Rob Schofield and Mitch Kokai review the week in state politics.

The mid-term primary has concluded with the ousting of a controversial Congressman, a clear conclusion in two progressive battles, and a path toward another intense, competitive and costly U.S. Senate race. On this episode of The Politics Podcast, Will Michaels chats with Jeff Tiberii about the results and the reasons behind them.

While early voting turnout was up, primary participation among younger voters is lagging. Is there anything that candidates could do differently? Meanwhile the Governor has unveiled his budget proposal and a major question again lingers – is this the year Medicaid expands in North Carolina? Donna Kina of the Carolina Journal and Rob Schofield from NC Policy Watch review some of the week’s political news.

With less than a week until the May 17th primary, early voters have turned out in very strong numbers. They are choosing major party nominees in an open U.S. Senate race, as well as in heated contests for Congress. Former Congressional staffer Doug Heye and political scientist Chris Cooper discuss what to make of early voting, and what it takes to unseat an incumbent such as Madison Cawthorn.

This week in politics: a landmark leak sent reverberations across the country, as advocates on both sides of an impassioned issue readied for the end of Roe; freshman Congressman Madison Cawthorn is again explaining an odd video; snd the housing crisis faces a new obstacle: corporate landlords. Rob Schofield of NC Policy Watch and Donna King from the Carolina Journal review the week in politics.

Following the leak of a draft Supreme Court ruling, America is readying for a post-Roe era. In North Carolina, major change does not appear imminent. On this episode of The Politics Podcast, Meredith College Political Science Professor David McLennan discussed the practical, as well as the political, impacts of the anticipated decision.

Early voting for the mid-term primary began across the state this week. Meanwhile, Congressman Madison Cawthorn brought a loaded gun to Charlotte Douglass International airport, and a new judge in the decades old Leandro public education case offered something of a split decision. In our weekly review, Mitch Kokai of the John Locke Foundation and Rob Schofield from NC Policy Watch discuss some of the recent political happenings.

Leslie McCrae Dowless died on April 24th. The Bladen County native came to national notoriety for his role in a 2018 election fraud saga. On this episode of the Politics Podcast, WBTV reporter Nick Ochsner discusses the electoral scandal and the well known character behind it.

This week in politics: Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court and is set to become the first Black woman to sit on the court in its 233-year history; a preliminary proposal at the state level could shift how public school teachers are licensed and compensated; And former President Donald Trump visits Johnston County on Saturday in the latest reminder of his domineering shadow over Republican Party politics.

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