THE SHELBY INDEPENDENT

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square file graphic | the Shelby Independent Education – Fifty-four percent of North Carolina public school high school graduates passed at least one-college level course while still in high school, education officials said Thursday. “For those who have been around a moment and have gray hair or less hair, understand the magnitude of that number, that percentage,” first-term Democratic Superintendent Mo Green told members of the state school bo

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square file graphic | The Shelby Independent (The Center Square) – Precedent setting cases at the U.S. Supreme Court and the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals guided a federal judge to upholding North Carolina’s photo identification voter requirement Thursday. North Carolina voters approved voter identification at the polls in 2018 through a constitutional amendment on the November ballot. In those midterms, 55.49% of nearly 3.7 million votes were

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square The Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters is seen in Washington, July 29, 2025.  Andrew Rice / The Center Square. (The Center Square) – FEMA, in the 11th hour of a two-week deadline, says it will comply with an order to reinstate $200 million in disaster prevention projects in North Carolina. The litigation is tied to the Federal Emergency Management Agency canceling the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program.

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square file graphic | The Shelby Independent (Affects local) NC Politics – With North Carolina’s primary work in the rearview mirror, voter registrations are rebounding following four weeks of declines overall and in each of the three major voting blocs. All had gains for the most recent seven days as reported Saturday by the State Board of Elections. The 13,400 increase had an 81.4% share bolster the unaffiliated bloc. Republicans gain 12.8%, or

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square Airline passengers are seated inside a cabin of a commercial plane. | Oxana Melis / Unsplash CHARLOTTE — Cancellations and delays at North America’s seventh busiest airport were down 90.7% and 35.5%, respectively, for the Friday-Saturday-Sunday weekend compared to the one before, analysis by The Center Square shows. The spike March 13-15 at Charlotte Douglas International Airport coincided with the f

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square file graphic | The Shelby Independent AFFECTS LOCAL – North Carolina has joined antitrust litigation filed in California seeking to block Nexstar’s $6.2 billion acquisition of rival Tegna, a move Attorney General Jeff Jackson says will send cable and satellite bills rocketing higher while local newsrooms are gutted.  The first-term Democrat says eight northeastern counties, and the markets around Charlotte and Greensboro have 2 million cons

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square A CCSO deputy's vehicle assists with an accident, closing the lane for safety measures on Highway 74 eastbound, west of Shelby as commuters pass by in the left lane. | Chuck Thompson NORTH CAROLINA – From first to fourth, North Carolina’s administrative ratio remains among the best in the country in the Reason Foundation’s Annual Highway Report. The Tarheel State was among the most cost-effective road systems, measuring condition, s

By David Beasley | The Center Square File graphic | The Shelby Independent NORTH CAROLINA – In just seven years, North Carolina could reach a demographic milestone: more deaths than births, according to new projections by the state’s demographer Michael Cline. “Unless fertility or life expectancy rise significantly, future population growth will depend entirely on domestic and international migration,” Cline wrote. “As the gap between births and deaths widens, population gro

By Allen Wooten | The Center Square file photo CHARLOTTE – Warnings for increased delays and possible cancellations reverberating through the airline industry because of the partial government shutdown include Charlotte, the world’s No. 6 airport in aircraft operations and North America’s No. 7 in passenger volume. Charlotte Douglas International Airport needs about 100 air traffic controllers in roles of actively working, managing coordinators, or administrative. The exact

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square A sign for the North Carolina Legislative Building stands outside the General Assembly on Jones Street in Raleigh. Photo: Alan Wooten / The Center Square (The Center Square) – Day 252 of North Carolina’s wait for a state budget included a brief gaveling in of the General Assembly, a $1.4 billion critical needs budget proposal from the governor, and a swift rejection from General Assembly leadership. While the Republican majority Senate was

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square (The Center Square) – Angela Hawkins has succeeded Bob Rucho as a Republican member of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, the office of the state auditor says. Rucho tendered his resignation this week. The decision, according to a spokesman in Boliek’s office, “was mutually agreed on and due to reportable candidate contributions.” While Rucho has drawn attention for support of state Sen. Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, in a primary rac

Commentary | The Shelby Independent OPINION — It’s March 3, the day most candidates have been waiting for (those that have a primary) and it couldn’t be sweeter or finer than to be in Carolina during this election of attrition, as many candidates have continued to nuke each other into oblivion right up to today. In the local races, Tim Moore is facing off across the wolf in sheep’s clothing: Kate Barr, pretending to be a Republican. This race has only been vicious from her si

By David Beasley | The Center Square The Shelby Independent (The Center Square) – In-state undergraduates in the UNC System for the first time in nine years will face tuition hikes next year, the Board of Governors said Thursday. The increase, raising average tuition from $4,684 to $4,809, takes effect next year for new students and won’t affect students currently enrolled in the system. The governing board also raised fees by an average of 1%. The board last year said it wo

By David Beasley | The Center Square File graphic photo | The Shelby Independent (The Center Square) – A strong statistical case for home ownership over renting is made in a new analysis from the Office of State Budget and Management in North Carolina. From 2020 to 2024, the cost of rent in North Carolina rose 10% over the previous five years, according to the report's interpretation of newly released U.S. Census numbers. In contrast, the cost for homeowners with mortgage

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square The North Carolina Legislative Building, home to the General Assembly, stands on Jones Street in Raleigh, N.C. Photo: Alan Wooten / The Center Square (The Center Square) – Stalled recovery in Hurricane Helene is blamed on “stifling bureaucracy utterly lacking in common sense and resourcefulness,” say seven Republican members of the North Carolina House of Representatives in a statement directed at first-term Democratic Gov. Josh Stein. This

By Annie Dance | WCAB News State Auditor Dave Boliek  announced  the creation of the Modernization of Election Data Systems (MEDS) Commission on Feb. 5, a bipartisan 22-member panel aimed at guiding efforts to update North Carolina’s election management system. The commission will advise on the three-phase modernization of the Statewide Elections Information Management System (SEIMS), which is managed by the North Carolina State Board of Elections. The Office of the State Au

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square (The Center Square) – Between 6 and 12 inches of snow and sleet were reported over the weekend near North Carolina’s border to Virginia and Tennessee and also in Buncombe County. A major winter storm gripping the nation from New Mexico to New England led to at least a dozen states getting federal emergency declarations from second-term Republican President Donald Trump. North Carolina is among them. The emergency declaration unlocks federal

By Chuck Thompson | The Shelby Independent, Special Saturday News & Weather Column Cleveland County Government has declared a state of Emergency, along with The City of Shelby and the State of North Carolina. SATURDAY, Jan. 24, 2026 — Icemegeddom looms on the horizon. Good morning, it's 5:30 a.m., as of publishing time. Today is the day the winter storm rolls in. Don't eat all your storm snacks before it's over. Today's local high will be in the mid 30's. Cloudy, goes without

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square Cooper’s campaign said it raised $9.5 million and Whatley’s team said it raised $5.1 million. (The Center Square) – Michael Whatley is 30 points clear of his nearest Republican rival and has pulled within 5% of Democratic front-runner Roy Cooper in the race to win a seat from North Carolina in the U.S. Senate. Carolina Forward’s sampling from Jan. 5-7 released on Monday is closer between Cooper and Whatley than the last poll in September (Co

By Alan Wooten | The Center Square The North Carolina state flag. file photo (The Center Square) – Of the state’s more than 7.6 million voter registrations, 38.8% are not choosing any of the lawful parties with which to register – Green and Libertarian are the others, each with less than 1%. Democrats gained 290 voters, have a 30.3% share and are a mere 604 ahead of Republicans. The Grand Old Party picked up 339 voters and has a 30.2% share. The unaffiliated bloc – gaining