“It’s the quack liberal, right?” a voter said affectionately.  “Dangerously woke,” David Hill answered with a smile, shaking the voter’s hand.  ***quick election day dispatch on state’s most competitive senate race*** theassemblync.com/live/2024-nc-e…

Like the state, New Hanover remains a mixed bag. State Sen. Lee (R) won comfortably in the region’s most expensive race. At the same time, county voters again picked a Democrat for president, the 2nd time in a row after choosing Rs since the 70s. theassemblync.com/politics/micha…

“This has gotten ridiculous” -NCSBE spox to New Hanover County official in an email this morning. County leaders are appalled there are 1,750 outstanding uncounted absentee ballots received before Election Day. Could impact several local seats. #ncpol whqr.org/local/2024-11-…

North Carolina’s propensity for ticket-splitting is so confounding that it recently inspired conspiracy theories. Ticket-splitting may be unusual for other states, but it’s typical here. theassemblync.com/politics/ticke… johanna f. still

State Sen. Michael Lee widened his victory margin in the most expensive local race and one of the state’s most competitive legislative districts. theassemblync.com/politics/micha…

This Cyber Monday, give yourself the gift of excellent journalism. Our subscriptions are now HALF OFF — get our archives for a year for $30, or go Premium for just $75. Act now: there's less than 12 hours left of this sale. theassemblync.com/subscriptions/

1. Our most read story of the year is about a ubiquitous sun shade spreading across North Carolina beaches. Shibumi is on a quest for coastal domination—and isn’t afraid to fight other companies for it. theassemblync.com/business/shibu…

1/ NEW: Over 3 years, N.C. legislators awarded anti-abortion centers $30 million in non-competitive grants. A The Assembly investigation found these unlicensed facilities *Largely skirt privacy laws *Have limited oversight *Share inaccurate info theassemblync.com/health/nc-cris…

a must-read

bill belichick asked unc staff to copy his girlfriend on every email they send him

Shital Patel’s husband died while undergoing a routine dental procedure. After she advocated for safety reforms, the governor’s office told her it had named her to the state dental board–then dentists intervened. By johanna f. still for The Assembly. #ncpol theassemblync.com/politics/denta…

President Trump’s tariff crusade is rocking retirement accounts. But for third-generation Sneads Ferry shrimper Nancy Edens, the president’s tariffs are a relief. “It feels like he threw us a lifeline,” she said. theassemblync.com/business/some-…

Ben Schachtman It's *Britney, Ben.

covering health care now for The Assembly ... DM/email with tips! [email protected]

The General Assembly can’t come to an agreement on legislation to fund the state’s $319M Medicaid rebase shortfall, which covers the gap between projected and actual expenses. With no deal in sight, NC DHHS said it was planning reimbursement rate cuts. theassemblync.com/all-newsletter…

The ABC Commission allows distilleries to sell their own liquor directly to customers–only if it’s produced on-site. But one Wilmington man is selling liquor at his new store anyway, relying on legal ambiguity in the state’s interpretation of “production.” theassemblync.com/business/momen…

the upside of being on like seven different North Carolina county mailing lists