Read my latest op-ed on why fossil fuel companies should pay for the harms they have caused to our environment, not you. cardinalpine.com/2026/01/28/o...

Private school tuition for the wealthy or healthcare for the most vulnerable North Carolinians? How would you spend $190 million? NC Republicans think it’s more important to overfund a slush fund for vouchers than make sure people can see a doctor. It’s all about priorities. 😣

"Finger-pointing, childish blame-shifting, and refusing to accomplish the fundamental task of passing a budget are what have characterized this year’s legislative session. Voters deserve better." I don’t often agree with the Carolina Journal, but today I do. www.carolinajournal.com/opinion/nort...

They are literally going to court to stop Americans from getting food. 😞🤯

Yet another example of how the lack of a state budget is affecting real people in NC. Child care centers are closing faster than new ones are opening, putting a strain on families and hurting the small business community. www.wunc.org/education/20...

Looks like the NCGA Republicans have time to go to Washington DC to kiss up to Trump but no time to pass a budget or fund Medicaid to actually help North Carolinians. 🤬

Democrats swept in South Wake County, NC!! 💙 Our Cary Town Council is now ALL Democratic WOMEN 💙 We flipped the Holly Springs Town Council and the Mayor 💙 We held an all-Democratic Apex Town Council This is how we do it @wakedems.bsky.social and @ncdemocrats.bsky.social! On to 2026!! 💪 🌊

It’s Election Day in Wake County! If you live in any municipality (except Raleigh), you have an election today. Make your voice heard in town council and mayoral races. Polls are open until 7:30 pm You can look up your polling place and sample ballot here: vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/.

You probably won’t hear about or know the names of the state legislators that are doing hard and important work at the state level, but there are thousands who work for little pay and little notoriety every day at the front lines of the battle for democracy. Shout out and much love to all of them. 🫡

And the cherry on top of a horrible week at the NCGA… the announcement that the legislature is most likely done meeting for the year without passing a state budget or saving our Medicaid program.

Amazing turnout at the @ncdemocrats.bsky.social Redistricting Rally today! Thank you to everyone who came out to stop the steal of NC through gerrymandering. Over 11,000 of you have submitted comments in opposition of the redistricting & so many came to give public comment at the legislature.

🚨 Monday night redistricting update! There’s still time to submit your comments in opposition to this blatant power grab aka redistricting bill. Huge shoutout to everyone who came to the Senate hearing today- the Republicans certainly got an earful!! It was amazing! 🔥

If you aren’t watching the Senate elections hearing, tune in. I’m so proud of all of these people who are making public comments on the illegal gerrymander. 🥹 They are giving the Republicans absolute hell. 👏👏👏 This is the way. 🔥 www.ncleg.gov/LegislativeC...

Good news! 🙂 We are returning to legislative session this week. Bad news! 😕 We aren’t there to pass a state budget, to invest in health care by saving Medicaid, or to do literally anything that helps North Carolinians.

🚨 Abortion bans don’t stop abortions — they stop SAFE ones. On #InternationalSafeAbortionDay, we fight for a world where abortion is safe, legal & accessible for ALL. Abortion is healthcare. Abortion is freedom. 💜 #SafeAbortionDay #ReproJustice @stateinnovation.org

North Carolina ranks last in the country in resources available to families, such as affordable child care, paid family leave, a decent minimum wage and available benefits. 😞 Source: www.pn3policy.org

Today, I cancelled my Hulu subscription and used that money to make a monthly donation to @aclu.org ✊

Do you trust politicians? That’s the topic of the podcast I recorded with Duke student Jill Sergison called TrustFund, where she explores how trust manifests across different aspects of society: where it thrives, where it breaks down, & what we can do to build it. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

This week, I voted no on the House budget proposal. This two year budget diverts $1.36 BILLION away from our public schools and gives it to private schools. I can not vote for a budget that doesn’t invest in ALL children, not just the ones that we choose to be worthy. (Full speech on my You Tube!)

“We don’t want to take away from one kid to give to another.” - Rep. Dean Arp (R), as he recommends voting down an amendment to the budget which would transfer funds from the private school voucher fund to give to kids in rural counties to travel on field trips to Raleigh. The hypocrisy is real. 🤯

🚨 560+ state lawmakers from all 50 states say hands off our health care to Congress in support of @ppfa.org Read more: six.community/letter-planned-parenthood @ppact.org @replorenagarcia.bsky.social @juliefornc.bsky.social @daubelatti.bsky.social

🧠 Better schools. 💰 Better pay. 🎓 Better future. HB420 could’ve changed everything. But the GOP chose politics over public education, again.

(another) bad bill alert 🚨 Crossover week brings a flurry of bad bills and HB 519 is one of them. This legislation repeals a 50 year old law, allowing minors to consent to medical treatment for issues like contraception, mental health, substance abuse and sexually transmitted diseases.

Congratulations and thank you, Justice Riggs! 🎉 You never gave up and we never gave up on you. You are an incredible fighter and an even more impressive Justice.

Instead of addressing issues that actually help North Carolinians, Republicans are passing bills that they have prioritized as being important this year: 😕 firing squad & electric chair as execution method 😣 lifetime concealed carry permit 😖 over-the-counter ivermectin

HB 193 is a dangerous bill which allows guns to be carried by teachers, staff and volunteers at private schools in NC. Instead of addressing the root causes of gun violence, Republican lawmakers continue to make guns easier to obtain and carry. Stop making our kids less safe.

Thanks to One Country for having me on their Hot Dish podcast with Iowa Rep. JD Scholten to talk about public education in NC & how attacks by Republicans are hurting our rural communities. Our country was built on the value of a great public education, and we must continue to fight for it.

Thank you to @juliefornc.bsky.social for continuing the fight for students' constitutional rights. Here, she lays out the clear case for why implementing the Leandro Plan is more urgent than ever #ncpol #LeadWithLeandro

If you can’t spell Nobel Prize, I don’t think you should be pushing OTC Ivermectin. 🤦‍♀️

Thank you to everyone who came to the legislature today for Rainbow Repro Day! We will continue fighting for every North Carolinians’ ability to make decisions about their own body, their own family and their own future, without the interference of politicians.

This Thursday evening at Apex Town Hall, come hear from the NC Budget and Tax Center, along with NC Senator Lisa Grafstein and NC Rep Julie von Haefen! @juliefornc.bsky.social @lisagrafstein.bsky.social #ncpol

“The huge expansion of these vouchers is going to affect our public schools because our revenues are down and they are going to be dropping every single year as the voucher spending is going up,” [von Haefen] said. “So something has to break…” 😞 www.newsobserver.com/opinion/arti...

Thank you @juliefornc.bsky.social, for working to make sure every child in NC receives a sound education!

Wake County Schools may be making “devastating” budget cuts next year because of the inaction of the legislature. If this is happening to one of the wealthiest counties in NC, what’s going to happen to other counties who may not have the same resources? #leandro #nced #ncpol

Thanks to everyone who came to the Rally Against DOGE yesterday at the legislature! 💪 @ncdemocrats.bsky.social

🚨 Bad bill alert 🚨 Speaker removed HB5 from Rules today & referred the bill to Judiciary which means it will start moving through the legislative process. HB5 would remove the permit requirement for concealed carry, allowing any legal adult over 18 to carry a firearm without government approval.

I recently appeared on “In Focus” on Spectrum to discuss artificial intelligence in our public schools. This emerging issue is one the legislature needs to learn more about during our upcoming session. Thanks for having me on!

2025 is coming. 😳

Merry Christmas! 🎄🎁 Thank you for following me and supporting my work in the legislature. I appreciate each and every one of you. I hope you have a wonderful holiday!

It’s been an honor to attend events at the White House over the last few years. Thank you to the President and First Lady for creating a beautiful atmosphere to celebrate the holidays. I will miss you! 😢 Merry Christmas Eve to everyone! 🎄

Last week, I appeared on Sirius XM Radio! I was on “State of the States” on Sirius XM Progress which dedicated an entire hour to SB 382, the Republican power grab bill passed in the legislature. It was a great discussion- if you have a subscription, you can listen here: siriusxm.com/player/episo...

Another horrible day at the legislature. 72 House Republicans stood united in voting to override Governor Cooper’s veto of a sham bill which ignores the needs of Western NC and shamelessly dismisses the will of the voters. This power grab is disgraceful. I am angry - and you should be too.

NC has the most unaccountable private school voucher program in the US. The GOP-led legislature rushed into appropriating half a BILLION dollars to a program that has no evidence that it increases educational outcomes, at the same time stating they had to “wait and see” to help Helene victims.

Congratulations to my friend Lynn Edmonds & thank you for asking me to swear you in tonight for your second term on the Wake County Board of Education! I’m so happy we campaigned together & we can continue advocating for our public schools and students at the local & state level.

The NC House is scheduled to vote next week- probably on 12/11. There’s still time to call and email House members and tell them to sustain the veto! No more power grabs!! 😡

Congratulations to my friend Wake County Registrar of Deeds Tammy Brunner! Thank you for asking me to swear you in tonight and thank you for all you do to serve Wake County!

“With North Carolina’s Republican-dominated General Assembly still dead-set on refusing to provide meaningful relief for mountain communities hit hard by Hurricane Helene on Sept. 27…” This is the kind of truth-telling we need in journalism. 👏👏 smokymountainnews.com/news/item/38...

We need more reps like this in NC! At least the Republicans lost the super majority...... And we have Dems in all the high seats. They will have to play ball to get anything done now. Huge win for the people #NorthCarolina

This week, the NCGA voted to override Governor Cooper’s veto of HB10, a harmful bill which will give $500 Million of your taxpayer money to wealthy families to pay for their private schools, & commits the state to pay over $6 BILLION over the next decade. This decision is irresponsible & wrong.

The “disaster relief” bill does nothing to help Western NC, but rather is a self-serving power grab to consolidate power and control in the hands of Republicans. Watch a portion of my floor speech from last night to learn where the NC GOP priorities lie.