Weekly Recap: Catch up on the news you missed from 5/28-6/3
NC lawmakers put forward a sweeping elections bill, advanced sports betting legislation and President Biden plans to nominate North Carolina's former top public health official to lead the CDC.
A fair amount of political stories this past week. But before we get to it, I found one item particularly important, which I’ve made available to all subscribers…
Democratic political consultant Conen Morgan dies in boating accident
North Carolina Democratic political consultant Conen Morgan died in a boating accident last Sunday.
Cape Lookout National Seashore, declined to release a victim’s name but confirmed an incident happened along the Outer Banks of North Carolina that resulted in the death of a male in their mid-40s, matching the description of Morgan.
Morgan was among three individuals ejected from a boat near Shackleford Banks. At the time, there were winds coming from the south-southwest of 8-16 miles per hour and wave swells of 7-9 feet. The two other passengers survived, and efforts to resuscitate Morgan on shore were unsuccessful.
Morgan was initially raised in North Carolina by a single mother who worked multiple jobs to support the family. As he grew older, Morgan developed a passion for math and science.
He got a computer science degree from North Carolina State University in 2005 and became very active behind the scenes in North Carolina politics.
He served as president of Young Democrats of North Carolina from 2009 to 2011 and was later incredibly active in supporting candidates through consulting work.
Since 2016, Morgan served as a board member for Advance Carolina, a nonprofit group that works to build political and economic power for Black North Carolinians.
🏈⚽️Senate OK’s sports betting, House plans to accept changes⚾️🏀
On Wednesday and Thursday, the Senate voted for a bill to legalize mobile sports betting in North Carolina. House Republican leaders have said they plan to send the measure to Gov. Roy Cooper this week.
If enacted, people would be able to place online sports wagers in North Carolina starting as early as Jan. 8, 2024— the same day as the next College Football Playoff National Championship game.
Under House Bill 347, people could place online bets through an approved list of operators. Wagers could be placed on professional sports, college sports, electronic sports and Olympic events. The Senate’s plan, which passed by a vote of 38-11, also adds horse racing onto the list of sports eligible for bets.
If enacted, approved sports gambling licensees could accept wagers from registered account holders who are at least 21 years of age. The House pushed for a 14% tax on gross wagering revenue from operators, while the Senate’s version of the bill raised the tax rate to 18%.
The current maximum personal and corporate income tax rate in North Carolina is 7%, prompting concerns of whether the taxable rate of 18% may get struck down in court.
Proceeds would largely go to 13 colleges and universities, a Durham-based nonprofit organization that promotes youth athletic and the state Department of Health and Human Services to combat gambling addiction.
If there are any additional proceeds, 20% would go to the 13 colleges and universities, 30% to a fund to attract majoring sporting events in the state and 50% to the state’s General Fund.
🗳️GOP senators call for major elections changes
Three North Carolina lawmakers on Thursday released a bill calling for several changes to the way North Carolina administers elections.
Under Senate Bill 747, North Carolinians who register to vote and cast a ballot on the same day would need to vote by a provisional ballot, which is not reflected in vote totals reported on Election Night and is held by county election officials for a closer review to determine a voter’s eligibility.
The bill also would require those who vote by mail to have their ballots received by their county board of elections by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day. Under current law, absentee ballots can be accepted by 5 p.m. three days after the election as long as they were postmarked by Election Day.
If the bill were enacted, individual precinct officials would need to record the names of people who assists a voter. The bill would also compel the State Board of Elections to implement a two-factor authentication process for mail-in ballots and require county boards of elections to use software to verify the signature of voters using who cast their ballot by mail.
Additionally, the bill would allow for public inspection of mail-in ballots at weekly county elections board meetings through Election Day
SB 747 would also prohibit state and local election officials from accepting private donations to administer elections. Republicans voiced concerns with 2020 election administration, particularly after North Carolina accepted nonpartisan election-administration grants primarily from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, to purchase pens and other items.
In December 2021, Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed a bill Republicans passed along party lines to prohibit the acceptance of private money for election administration. That same month, he also vetoed a separate measure that would’ve required absentee ballots to arrive by Election Day, writing in a veto message that the proposal “virtually guarantees that some [votes] will go uncounted.”
😷Former NCDHHS leader Mandy Cohen expected to lead CDC
President Joe Biden plans to nominate Mandy Cohen, North Carolina’s top public health official throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, as his next director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a source familiar with the matter confirmed to me.
While Cohen’s selection is not final, she is the leading candidate to replace current CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, who is stepping down on June 30.
News of Biden’s expected nomination of Cohen was first reported on Thursday by The Washington Post, which cited three people who spoke on the condition of anonymity so as not to get ahead of a White House announcement. The Post also said U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra spoke with Cohen this week and congratulated her.
📖5 essential reads
NC lawmakers expected to roll out major election law changes, with input from former Trump lawyer (Will Doran // WRAL)
Biden plans to pick physician Mandy Cohen to lead CDC (Dan Diamond and Lena Sun // The Washington Post)
Waiting on NC death certificates, families forced to put their lives on hold (Ames Alexander // The Charlotte Observer)
Pactiv’s request for a tax break is soundly rejected (Smoky Mountain News // Cory Vaillancourt)
North Carolina GOP negotiations likely next to curb appointment powers of Gov. Roy Cooper (Associated Press)
This week’s alerts
You can expect this month to be very active in North Carolina politics, as lawmakers work toward a budget deal, negotiate differences on key bills and advance important legislation.
I’ll be out in the field on a couple assignments this week and attending to some volunteer activities, so alerts may be less frequent. If you aren’t already a paid member, you can upgrade your membership here to keep up to date with all alerts as they are released.