RALEIGH -- Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand, one of North Carolina's most powerful and colorful lawmakers, announced Wednesday that he is resigning from the legislature.
The surprise move will end an unprecedented stretch in which the team of Rand and Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight ran the state Senate and, some would argue, the state itself. Rand, a Fayetteville Democrat, had a hand in virtually every major piece of legislation that passed during the past decade, from the establishment of a state lottery to the flow of money to the state's highways and universities.
Rand, a lawyer, accepted Democratic Gov. Bev Perdue's appointment as chairman of the state parole board. He said his resignation would take effect by the end of the year, but did not set a date.
Rand had mastered the arcane ways of the legislature over the course of 22 years in the Senate, and clearly relished the opportunity to confront and confound his opponents in private meetings and public debates.
"Tony plays for keeps," said Sen. David Hoyle, a Gaston County Democrat. "He's a master of the game. He's a great ally when he's on the same page on a bill, and a tough opponent when he's not."
Sen. Tom Apodaca, a Republican from Hendersonville who is a close friend to Rand, said Basnight decided where the trains would go and Rand kept them on schedule. It was not immediately clear Wednesday who might step in to fill his role in the Senate.
"I don't know if in my lifetime we'll ever see another team like that," Apodaca said. "And maybe we don't need to. When you've been there too long, power sort of centralizes. The longer you're there, the more political capital you collect and spend."
Rand turned 70 in September and, noting that his father died at the same age, said new challenges appeal to him.
"There comes a time when it's time to go," Rand said.
Fellow senators have routinely speculated in recent months over whether Basnight would leave the Senate because of a slowly progressing neurological disorder, but Rand's sudden departure fit with his history of keeping opponents guessing his next move and, in this case, wondering why.
Flanked from the left
A leftward shift in the Democratic caucus that controls the Senate made his role as majority leader more difficult. A growing coalition of more liberal Democrats in the Senate helped push through laws this year that allow more comprehensive sex education, specifically protect gay students from bullying and allow death penalty challenges based on race.
"Sen. Rand increasingly found his views at odds with his more liberal Democratic colleagues, and that may have led to this decision," said Senate Republican Leader Phil Berger of Eden.
Rand served as Basnight's enforcer. He engineered the lottery's passage after years of futility, shepherded a massive bond package for university construction, helped line up key appointments and took the front line in contentious battles such as shoring up the state health plan. The state Real Estate Commission dedicated its office building to him.
"I am confident that I speak for the entire Senate," Basnight said in a prepared statement, "when I say that his service and expertise in this institution are unmatched and unlikely to ever be."
Basnight and Rand over the years built a fundraising system that raised hundreds of thousands of dollars. They did not need the money for their own re-election in safely Democratic districts but used it instead to support other Democratic legislative candidates in an ongoing effort to increase their majority in the Senate.
Rand would quickly unholster the rules and procedures of the Senate to shut down an opponent. After Basnight's election as president pro tem this year, Rand used a parliamentary maneuver to ensure that the vote could never be recalled.
Many Republicans and even some Democrats regarded Rand with suspicion because of his role as minister of discipline.
"Every organization has got to have somebody who has to take the heat for a decision, and Tony has been that person," Hoyle said. "He has been the one who delivered the bad news and got the blame for things that were not of his making. Don't kill the messenger, but I think some people would like to have killed the messenger."
A quick and gravelly wit
Rand's image was softened by a quick wit delivered in his gravelly baritone with sweeping hand gestures that prompted some to dub him the Foghorn Leghorn of the Senate.
A devoted UNC fan, he traveled to championship games and rarely missed an opportunity to poke other schools. During a committee presentation on entrepreneurship programs, lawmakers were told of a ranking in which Western Carolina was first, UNC took second and Harvard came in third.
"Exceptionally fine showing for Harvard," Rand said.
Rand's new job as parole board chairman is a full-time post with a $100,000 salary. The commission releases inmates who have met eligibility requirements, sets rules for parolees and advises the governor on clemency.
"If you happen to find yourself serving active time," he said at the end of an interview, "you come see me."
News researcher Brooke Cain contributed to this report.
