Following last Tuesday’s elections, many outcomes were apparent on election night. Rep. Ted Budd had won the U.S. Senate seat in North Carolina by 3.5%. Reps. Alma Adams, Dan Bishop, and Patrick McHenry cruised to victory. Jeff Jackson, a state senator, won election to North Carolina’s new 14th Congressional District in the Charlotte area.
In South Carolina, Gov. Henry McMaster and Sen. Tim Scott claimed victory shortly after polls closed.
North Carolina and South Carolina will continue to be well represented in Washington. North Carolina’s congressional delegation shifts from eight Republicans and five Democrats to seven from both parties. Congressional districts will be redrawn so the makeup of the delegation could look different after 2024.
In South Carolina, the congressional delegation remains at six Republicans and one Democrat. However, Rep. Tom Rice was defeated in the primary election by Russell Fry, who went on to win the general election.
With rising stars in both parties in the region’s delegation, the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance® will seek creative ways to leverage that star power to meet the needs of the Charlotte Region’s business community.
At the state level in North Carolina, Republicans flipped two Senate seats to reach 30 seats and achieve supermajority status in that chamber. However, in the House, Republicans are now at 71 seats, one seat shy of the 72-seat threshold needed for a supermajority in that chamber.
The key takeaway for this change is that next year in the General Assembly, Republicans can pass legislation and override Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto in the Senate. In the House, Republicans will need to remain united on override votes and have at least one Democrat join them in voting to override a veto. A bi-partisan veto override will very likely depend on the specific issue in question.
Importantly, Republicans now control the North Carolina Supreme Court as well after flipping two seats. The court will likely be presented a case challenging redrawn legislative and congressional maps. The current court had required redraws of the maps originally approved by the Republican-controlled General Assembly. Additionally, any challenges to legislatively approved policy, regardless of Cooper’s action, could be presented to the State Supreme Court for a final decision.
Entering the elections in South Carolina, Republicans controlled both the House and Senate. Along with McMaster, Republicans have been able to pursue many of their agenda items and will continue to do so next year and beyond.
Locally, the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners saw a status quo result. Each incumbent who ran for re-election won, with one new member joining. However, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board saw significant changes. Only one incumbent who ran for re-election won.
For the next two years in Washington, Democrats will maintain control of the White House and Senate, while Republicans will control the House. Both legislative bodies will be controlled by parties with only slight majorities. Gridlock may be the default outcome, but opportunities may exist to make policy gains.
The CLT Alliance looks forward to working with policymakers at the local, state, and federal levels to advance a competitive business climate that continues to attract talent and businesses to the region. In 2023, there is a great opportunity to build on the policy successes achieved in recent years.
