NC Republican Senate majority leader won’t seek re-election
A high profile Republican leader in the North Carolina state legislature announced Wednesday he will not run for re-election.
Sen. Harry Brown, of Jacksonville, has served eight terms and is the Senate majority leader. He is also the lead budget writer.
Candidate filing for the 2020 election, which include all 170 seats in the General Assembly, starts Dec. 2.
Brown announced his decision on a radio show this week, according to a news release from Senate Republicans.
“After nearly 16 years in the Senate, I feel like it’s the appropriate time to focus on my family and businesses,” Brown said. “When I was first elected, I ran on three things: do something for career and technical education, tax policy and term limits.
“With the completion of Onslow County School’s regional skills center and North Carolina’s tax climate being one of the best in the nation, I felt it was time to check off the last goal, so to say.”
Brown’s Republican Senate colleagues shared appreciation for his work in the same release.
Senate leader Phil Berger of Eden said Brown has been “dedicated to improving the lives of rural North Carolinians.”
Sen. Kathy Harrington of Gaston County said Brown’s “steadfast leadership on the budget and in the caucus has put North Carolina on better financial footing. No matter what, he’s always found ways to support the victims of natural disasters and military families. His guidance will be felt throughout the state for years to come.”
And Sen. Brent Jackson of Sampson County praised Brown’s support of the U.S. Marines stationed in North Carolina and helping Jones County after hurricanes.
Switching parties
Brown started his political career as a Democrat, losing in a primary in 2002 before switching parties, The News & Observer previously reported. He told The N&O in 2018 that he changed parties because he felt the Republican Party cared more about small business owners. Brown owns a car dealership.
Brown was among other Republican state lawmakers who criticized then-Gov. Pat McCrory in 2015 over their legislative agenda.
Brown, Harrington and Jackson were the three co-signers of a letter to Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, this past summer over stalled budget negotiations.
“If [Cooper’s] willing to not just have a show, but really sit down and negotiate, we’d love to sit down with him,” Brown told reporters in July after Cooper vetoed the budget.
The state budget was never resolved. The House overrode the veto but the Senate never called for a vote. And they adjourned earlier in November, not planning to come back until Jan. 14. Raises for teachers and some other state employees remain on the table, as well as Medicaid transformation, which has been delayed indefinitely.
Brown isn’t the only Republican state lawmaker to announce he or she won’t seek re-election. Sen. Rick Gunn of Burlington announced last week he won’t run again, and earlier this week Rep. Debra Conrad of Winston-Salem also said she will not seek another term. Conrad has already endorsed a Lewisville Town Council member for her seat.
Among Democrats, Sen. Floyd McKissick Jr. of Durham confirmed this week he will resign to take the governor’s appointment to the state Utilities Commission. Another Durham lawmaker, Rep. MaryAnn Black, announced this week she will not run for another term.
The state primary is March 3.
For more North Carolina government and politics news, listen to the Domecast politics podcast from The News & Observer and the NC Insider. You can find it on Megaphone, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts.
This story was originally published November 27, 2019 at 2:57 PM.
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