THE SHELBY INDEPENDENT

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

By David Beasley | The Center Square (The Center Square) – Charlotte has landed its second new corporate headquarters in less than a week, thanks in part to taxpayer incentives. Couple with incentives from North Carolina's Queen City and Mecklenburg County, Danish global logistics company Maersk is in line for up to $9.8 million in taxpayer subsidies. A state board on Tuesday approved $7.9 million in state grants. Maersk plans to invest $16 million to make Charlotte its North