Two NC lawmakers left the Democrats. Here’s how the political parties reacted.
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Two Charlotte-area state representatives left the Democratic Party after losing primaries.
- Their departures create uncertainty about House veto overrides
- State GOP and Democratic leaders issued opposite public reactions to their decisions.
After two state lawmakers switched their party affiliations, reactions from Republicans and Democrats have been a mix of optimism and snark.
State Reps. Carla Cunningham and Nasif Majeed, who each represent parts of Charlotte, both left the Democratic Party over the past week.
The two former Democrats both lost their primary elections in March and will finish out their terms in the House as unaffiliated.
Cunningham has said she wants to serve the people rather than a political party. Majeed has said it was a matter of principle and signaled frustration with political practices.
The two lawmakers leaving the Democratic Party creates uncertainty for veto overrides.
Gov. Josh Stein, a Democrat, vetoed several bills last year, including a few that would eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in schools and government, as well as a bill that would remove requirements as part of carrying concealed handguns.
Although the Senate has a Republican supermajority, House GOP members are one vote short of being able to reverse Stein’s vetoes without help.
House Republicans have at times been able to get help from a Democrat or two to turn the tide — including Majeed and Cunningham. It’s unclear whether either would vote to override more of Stein’s vetoes this year.
Democrats react
At a press conference on Monday, Durham Democrat Rep. Vernetta Alston told The News & Observer that Cunningham and Majeed “have always thought and voted in accordance with their own values. Nothing’s changed.”
“We’re going to focus on working together,” she said.
In contrast, Anderson Clayton, the chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party, posted to social media after Cunningham announced her decision: “Don’t let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya, as they say!”
House Democratic Leader Robert Reives said in a statement that he expects that Cunningham and Majeed will continue to vote according to their values.
“I value their friendship and look forward to continuing to serve with them,” he said.
Alston told reporters she couldn’t talk about matters related to caucus, including whether Cunningham and Majeed had been and were going to continue caucusing with Democrats, but “we’re going to keep the same game plan.”
She also told reporters that “we’ve been thinking and strategizing on vetoes all session, and again, our approach is going to be the same as it was last year. We don’t expect anything to be different.”
Republicans react
In an email statement, Republican House Speaker Destin Hall said he applauds Cunningham and Majeed “for putting their constituents first.”
He said the Democratic Party “has no room for those who don’t toe the line of the far left’s agenda.”
“Like so many other North Carolinians, they have chosen to move on from a Democratic Party that has left them behind,” Hall said. “Both of these members have led with integrity, refusing to let political pressure dictate their convictions or undermine the interests of the people they were elected to serve, and North Carolina is better for it.”
NC GOP chair Jason Simmons in a statement on the state party’s Facebook page said Cunningham’s “departure confirms what hundreds of thousands of former Democrats have seen: this is a party doesn’t care about them, doesn’t work for them, and doesn’t share their values.”
Kyle Kirby, the chairman of the Mecklenburg County Republican Party, also posted to the county party’s Facebook page and said Cunningham “demonstrated true leadership by standing firmly on her principles when it mattered most.”
“Her statement that she was elected to serve the people, not a party, highlights a fundamental truth, the right thing often requires putting principles above politics,” the statement read. “Representative Cunningham has made it clear that she will not compromise the needs of her constituents to satisfy a party agenda.”
