North Carolina is about to get its first Buc-ee’s, the massive, cult-classic gas station rapidly expanding across the southeast. It was founded in Texas in 1982 as a normal convenience store, but in the ensuing decades it’s become anything but.

Black people make up just 21% of North Carolina’s population, yet they account for nearly 60% of those serving life without parole.

Join us to celebrate the launch of The Line, a new source of local journalism in Western Wake County that connects you with civic info, cultural updates, events, and conversations about the place we call home.

Many EOD techs believe occupational hazards are contributing to high rates of behavioral health disorders and illnesses showing up among members of the military who work closely with explosives. www.theassemblync.com/news/militar...

Many EOD techs believe occupational hazards are contributing to high rates of behavioral health disorders and illnesses showing up among members of the military who work closely with explosives. www.theassemblync.com/news/militar...

Building on his faculty roots, UNC Greensboro Chancellor Frank Gilliam has steered the university through crisis and political sea changes. He may be an endangered species. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...

Republicans now outnumber Democrats for the first time in #ncpol history. For more about why this happened & what it means, see this piece I wrote for @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/politics/dem...

For the first time in state history, North Carolina has more registered Republicans than Democrats. Data released Saturday by the State Board of Elections show that Republicans became the second-biggest voting group last week.

Right now, everyone is in your inbox with year-end pleas for help: donations, subscriptions, an extra kidney, anything you can spare. Including us, obviously. I won’t knock our fellow players or tell you not to support them. But I will tell you why The Assembly should be at the top of your list.

Buckhout narrowly lost to Davis last year, but she took a cyber defense job in the Trump administration in March and seemed unlikely to run again. Instead, she endorsed Rocky Mount Mayor Sandy Roberson. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

Nearly 3.6 million different readers visited The Assembly Network this year, an all-time high. And the stories that drew you in were as diverse and unique as this place we call home. Here are the 10 most-read Assembly stories of 2025. 🧵

At The Assembly, we are lucky to work with a number of photographers around the state. Their eye for detail and ability to capture just the right moment is unmatched–and really makes our stories come to life. Here are some of our favorite images from North Carolina news this year.

State lawmakers said court officials in their home districts have not seen the conveniences and cost-savings eCourts was supposed to bring.

Here are our staff’s favorite stories published throughout the year, which we are putting outside our paywall as a special gift to you.

How did the rapper, still omnipresent three decades after his death, come to rest in a Lumberton grave? Journalist Jeff Pearlman went down to Robeson County to find out.

New charter schools in North Carolina are struggling to enroll enough students to stay solvent. One High Point school’s mid-fall implosion shows the consequences for families. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...

Syllabi for all courses in the UNC System will now be considered public records and soon must be made available online, under a rule issued Friday by system President Peter Hans. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...

Facing an uphill legal battle, the Stein administration reversed its cuts to Medicaid providers last week. But the governor’s attempt to steamroll the deadlocked legislature could make a still-looming crisis harder to fix. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

BREAKING: Former North Carolina Gov. Jim Hunt has died, his family announced on Thursday. #ncpol

From 2024: Michele Morrow’s primary defeat of incumbent Catherine Truitt took many by surprise. But the candidate for state superintendent is following Steve Bannon’s playbook to seize and reshape the Republican Party. www.theassemblync.com/politics/mic...

Breaking: Michele Morrow Launches Bid for U.S. Senate www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

BREAKING: Fresh off losing a reelection bid last month, former Durham city councilor DeDreana Freeman has filed to challenge state senator Sophia Chitlik for the District 22 seat

BREAKING: Michele Morrow, the former Republican candidate for state superintendent of public instruction, filed paperwork on Thursday to run for U.S. Senate, according to her campaign and the North Carolina State Board of Elections.

Retired Army Col. Laurie Buckhout announced Wednesday she’s running in the Republican primary for North Carolina’s 1st District. If she won, she would face U.S. Rep. Don Davis in what is anticipated to be one of NC’s tightest House races. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

BREAKING: The U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to grant full federal recognition for the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, a moment 137 years in the making.

Dillon Ledford doesn’t remember getting punched and shocked by a trio of police officers in a Walmart parking lot, but security footage tells the story. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

In the Christmas tree capital of the world, Frosty’s Choose & Cut is a family tradition for those who want memories more than comfort. www.theassemblync.com/news/culture...

In journalism, we use the word “budget” to mean two different things: the stories we have projected to run over the next weeks or months and the amount of money we have to spend on them. As The Assembly Network’s executive editor, I have to consider both at all times.

Via @insideclimatenews.org | The discovery of TFA in blood and water samples raises questions about Chemours’ role in adding to the pollution burden. www.theassemblync.com/news/environ...

A judge said two men incarcerated for 23 years didn’t kill the grandfather of NBA star Chris Paul. So why are they still in prison? www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

Via @notus.com | Democrats are projecting confidence in races for two House seats in North Carolina, despite the Republicans’ gerrymandering effort to make the state’s congressional districts more conservative. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

Moore-Cumberland state Sen. Tom McInnis has threatened to sue his election opponent, fellow Republican Ray Daly, for libel. Also hints at a criminal charge for lying. www.cityviewnc.com/stories/stat... #ncga #ncpol

Danish artist Thomas Dambo’s family of five recycled troll sculptures now cavort across the Raleigh park’s 308 acres. Daddy Bird Eye, Mother Strongtail, and their three baby trolls have a message: Protect the trees.

In February, we turn five years old. We’re ready to keep building for the next five years and assemble a place where you can always find smart, unbiased reporting about what’s behind the stories. Support our work here: theassemblync.com/subscribe/?u...

Regulations meant to prevent unfettered health care expansion are blocking needed hospital beds in a rural part of North Carolina. Some officials and health care providers are contesting such “certificate of need” laws. www.theassemblync.com/news/health/...

Enrollment at Guilford College has fallen to 950 students, which the college said meant an estimated $3.5 million drop in tuition revenue. But enrollment numbers are now holding steady. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...

The UNC System is considering requiring syllabi for all courses at state-funded universities be made available to the public, according to a draft proposal obtained by The Assembly. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...

As a high school coach, Biff Poggi won big stressing love and teamwork. But can it carry a college team to victory? www.theassemblync.com/culture/foot...

State Senate leader Phil Berger got the most sought-after endorsement any Republican could hope for: President Donald Trump declared on Wednesday that he was backing Berger’s reelection bid amid a primary challenge from Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

From 2022: How the race between Valerie Foushee and Nida Allam for North Carolina’s most progressive district became the most expensive Democratic congressional primary in state history. www.theassemblync.com/politics/buy...

Exclusive from INDY: Durham County Commissioner Nida Allam will challenge incumbent congresswoman Valerie Foushee in the March Democratic primary for NC's 4th district.

Durham County commissioner Nida Allam will file to run for the seat on Thursday, challenging Representative Valerie Foushee in a near replay of the 2022 race.

The law firm representing the North Carolina Board of Massage and Bodywork Therapy keeps 65% of most of the board’s revenue from licensing fees for the more than 10,460 therapists in North Carolina. www.theassemblync.com/news/health/...

A revised national defense spending agreement released this week would give full federal recognition to the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

Two criminal defense attorneys say they have filed complaints with the North Carolina State Bar against a Wake County prosecutor who has been accused in three cases of withholding potentially exonerating evidence from criminal defendants. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

Four men convicted as teenagers of killing NBA star Chris Paul’s grandfather were willing to be retried after a judge exonerated them nearly four months ago if it meant that two of the men still imprisoned might be released. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

A North Carolina state lawmaker and a former state House member dove headlong into a competitive state House primary, accusing a Democratic former colleague of making racist remarks years earlier. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

A year after an agreement was reached between Roseboro’s Snow Hill neighborhood and the company in charge of a massive landfill, community advocates say progress has been steady but slow. www.theassemblync.com/news/environ...

All week, candidates for Congress and other political offices traveled to Raleigh to submit official paperwork so they can run. Here are three things to know about the filings. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

The “One Big Beautiful Bill” that Congress passed earlier this year will create significant changes to how many North Carolinians access and pay for their health care, some of which will result in sharply higher premiums next year. www.theassemblync.com/news/health/...