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Education
The two sides to NC state test score results
The release of annual state test scores earlier this week at the State Board of Education generated a lot of smiles. Highlights included: Graduation Rates. Data revealed record high graduation…
Elections & Public Integrity
Op-Ed: Will Black voters save the Democratic Party from socialism?
This op-ed originally appeared in the Winston-Salem Journal on August 27. While Black voters have long been the most consistent supporters of the Democratic Party, they are also some of…
Elections & Public Integrity
Fix North Carolina’s candidate withdrawal and absentee ballot deadline problems
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s fight to withdraw his name from the ballot in 2024 exposed the need to reform North Carolina’s candidate withdrawal and absentee ballot deadline laws. Two years…
NC 250
Griffith Rutherford: Man of action
Griffith Rutherford was a civic and military leader from the North Carolina frontier who was involved in all aspects of the colony’s Revolutionary struggle. He lived just southwest of Salisbury…
Elections & Public Integrity
How do 2026 early voting plans compare to 2022?
In the summer of every federal election year, North Carolina is treated to a bit of drama over early voting sites, with Democrats and Republicans trading barbs over a handful…
Research Brief
Elections & Public Integrity
North Carolina scores well on election policy but could do better
A national think tank recently rated all fifty states on election policy. North Carolina scored relatively well, but it was among the states that still have “room for improvement.” There…
Research Brief
Law & Public Safety
The trouble with rational basis review, part four
Note: This is the fourth in a series of research briefs discussing rational basis review, a judicial doctrine that shields economic regulations from constitutional challenges. Part three of this series…
Education
And now, for some good news about NC schools
North Carolinians have two more reasons to be happy our schools. Earlier this week US News announced the latest rankings of public high schools in the US. North Carolina had…
Budget, Taxation & Economy
Tariffs are the political albatross of 2026
An August 13 Carolina Journal Poll offers a stark warning for Republicans heading into the 2026 midterm elections: North Carolina voters overwhelmingly believe tariffs make the things they buy more…
Research Brief
Energy
The Carbon Plan law: Energizing higher power bills
Power bills are getting worse in North Carolina. While families try to cope, high rates have grabbed the attention of news media and politicians such as Gov. Josh Stein, Attorney…
NC 250
Revolutionary Resolves in NC from the East to the West
Annoyance and resistance to the policies of King George III and the British Parliament did not just materialize after the April 1775 battles of Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts. In…
Research Brief
Budget, Taxation & Economy
Tracking the impact of Trump’s tariffs
Trump’s tariffs have: imposed significant costs on U.S. households, harmed GDP, did not reduce America’s trade balance, and amounted to the largest tax increase since 1993.