Mecklenburg Dems Join Republicans in Overriding Stein Vetoes
Legislation targeting trans people, immigrants, transparency and environmental regulation pushed through on Tuesday
Republicans in the North Carolina General Assembly (NCGA) overrode eight of Gov. Josh Stein’s vetoes on Tuesday morning, pushing through a slate of conservative bills with the help of four Democratic lawmakers, two of whom represent Mecklenburg County.
With all 71 Republicans voting together on each override, the party needed just one Democrat to cross the aisle in each vote to successfully override Stein’s vetoes. Republicans are targeting 14 of Stein’s vetoes and have already successfully overrode eight of them.
NC Reps. Carla Cunningham and Nasif Majeed of Mecklenburg County voted with Republicans on certain issues Tuesday, as did NC Reps. Shelley Willingham of eastern North Carolina and Cecil Brockman of Guilford County (High Point).
While all four Democrats did not vote with Republicans on every vote, they were the only Dems to cross the aisle during Tuesday morning’s session.
Cunningham voted to override five of Stein’s vetoes while Majeed supported two overrides. Willingham — who represents Edgecombe, Martin and Bertie counties in the area north of Greenville — lodged six votes to override vetoes while Brockman voted twice to do so.
Here’s a glance at each bill that was pushed through on Tuesday despite Gov. Stein’s override and reactions from community leaders.
Senate Bill 416: Personal Privacy Protection Act
SB 416 is one of a slew of “donor privacy bills” being pushed in state legislatures across the country that will make it harder for the public to track political money. A joint release from a coalition of voting rights organizations on Tuesday stated that the bill “threatens the integrity of our democracy by gutting transparency and inviting a flood of secret money into our political system.”
“Senate Bill 416 is not about protecting ordinary donors, it’s about shielding ultra-wealthy donors and political insiders who want to operate in the shadows,” stated Melissa Price Kromm, executive director for NC For The People Action, in the release.
“By weakening donor disclosure laws, this bill gives political nonprofits a green light to further hide who’s funding their activities. Voters deserve to know who is influencing our elections and shaping public policy — not just in theory, but in practice. Senate Bill 416 strips away that right and silences accountability. It opens the door to pay-to-play politics where those with deep pockets can purchase influence without public scrutiny.”
NC Reps. Carla Cunningham, Cecil Brockman and Shelley Willingham voted to override the governor’s veto of the bill.
House Bill 805: Prevent Sexual Exploitation/Women and Minors
One of multiple anti-trans bills pushed by NCGA Republicans this session, HB 805 will create rigid definitions of sex and gender in state law, forcing trans people to out themselves in situations where a birth certificate is needed and extending the time in which people can file medical malpractice suits against doctors who provide gender-affirming care in an attempt to intimidate providers.
“At a time when teachers, law enforcement, and state employees need pay raises and people need shorter lines at the DMV, the legislature failed to pass a budget and, instead, wants to distract us by stoking culture wars that further divide us,” Stein said after vetoing the bill on July 3. “These mean-spirited bills would marginalize vulnerable people and also undermine the quality of public services and public education.”
NC Rep. Nasif Majeed voted in support of the veto override, drawing a reaction from Charlotte City Council member LaWana Mayfield.
“While standing in support of Governor [Josh Stein’s] #Veto at a rally this morning, someone who I thought believed in respecting ALL residents including our #trans sisters & brothers [Nasif Majeed] was the deciding Vote to overrule the Veto of #HB805,” Mayfield wrote on Facebook. “I am so disappointed … and heartbroken.”
House Bill 318: The Criminal Illegal Alien Enforcement Act
Along with Senate Bill 153, House Bill 318 will require sweeping cooperation between state and local agencies and federal immigration authorities. Specifically, HB 318 mandates extended detention based solely on the existence of an ICE detainer and administrative warrant — even before conviction — and directs judicial officials to delay release by two hours to allow for federal queries.
NC Rep. Carla Cunningham voted to override the veto of HB 318, remarking about the need to “end the conveyor belt” of immigration into the United States and using nationalist language during a debate over the bill in her insistence that “all cultures are not equal.”
In a statement responding to Tuesday’s overrides, the LGBTQ+ Democrats of NC spoke specifically to the overrides of HB 805 and HB 318.
“These bills, now set to become law, attack our most vulnerable neighbors. At a time when our immigrant and trans communities are targeted at every level of government, it is disgusting to see our state legislature pile on and give their stamp of approval to legislation only meant to victimize them.
“Moreover, the fact that Democrats from Mecklenburg County voted for the override is maddening,” the statement continued. “Representatives like Carla Cunningham and Nasif Majeed show us their true colors when they ask us for their vote in election years and turn around and attack us once in Raleigh.”
Read more: Advocates Speak Against Recent ICE Actions in Charlotte
Senate Bill 266: The Power Bill Reduction Act
Despite its misleading name, experts have said that SB 266 will raise energy costs for households, eliminate Duke Energy’s requirement to reduce climate pollution by 70% by 2030, and slow the state’s transition to clean energy.
The bill also grants new authority to utilities like Duke Energy to charge customers during the construction of new power plants.
“This vote was a betrayal of North Carolina families in favor of corporate profit,” stated Shannon Binns, executive director of Sustain Charlotte, in a release on Tuesday. “Lawmakers have handed Duke Energy a blank check — allowing them to build power plants without ensuring they’re necessary, then charge us for them before they produce a single watt of energy. It’s a stunning example of money overpowering the public interest, and it will cost us dearly in health, equity, and climate resilience.”
NC Reps. Carla Cunningham, Nasif Majeed and Shelley Willingham voted in favor of the override.
House Bill 402: Limit Rules with Substantial Financial Costs
HB 402 would make any regulation with an economic impact of $1 million or more over 12 months subject to a legislative disapproval process, making it easier for lawmakers to block such regulation. The bill also modifies how economic impact is calculated for proposed rules that amend or readopt existing regulations.
The Sierra Club of North Carolina says the bill creates “unrealistic, unnecessary hurdles for virtually any rule being considered for agency action.”
“House and Senate members have further bogged down their ability to fulfill the duties they were elected to perform by requiring heavy — and unnecessary — legislative involvement in the rulemaking process,” wrote Chris Herndon, chapter director with NC Sierra Club, in a statement following Tuesday’s vote. “They’ve rejected the logical need to consider proposed rules’ benefits to the constituents they represent, focusing only on fiscal drawbacks. They have also set up an unconstitutional violation of the separation of powers between government branches, which we hope the courts will swiftly overturn.”
NC Reps. Carla Cunningham and Shelley Willingham voted to override the governor’s veto.
Senate Bill 254: Charter School Changes
This bill reforms the oversight structure of charter schools, giving that power to a board of NCGA appointees.
A joint statement from NC State Board of Education (SBE) chair Eric Davis and NC Superintendent of Public Instruction Maurice “Mo” Green on July 2 called the bill unconstitutional.
“Charter schools are public schools,” the statement read. “Several provisions in Senate Bill 254 unconstitutionally propose to transfer core responsibilities of oversight, accountability and rulemaking for charter schools from the SBE and North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction — the constitutionally established authorities entrusted with the responsibilities to supervise and administer our state’s public school system — to a non-constitutional body.
“The state constitution entrusts these duties and responsibilities to the SBE and state superintendent,” it continued. “This bill would severely hinder the SBE and state superintendent’s ability to execute their constitutional mandates in service of all public school students. Even more importantly, these provisions threaten the SBE and state superintendent’s ability to ensure that all public-school students, regardless of setting, receive the education to which they are constitutionally entitled.”
NC Reps. Carla Cunningham, Shelley Willingham and Cecil Brockman voted to overturn the governor’s veto.
House Bill 549: Clarify Powers of State Auditor
This bill expands the North Carolina auditor’s investigative powers to encompass any entity receiving state or federal funds, requiring the office to pursue any reports of “improper governmental activities” among those agencies, their employees or any individuals who receive public funds.
““House Bill 549 would grant the Auditor sweeping access to the data and records of any private corporation that accepts any amount of state funding,” wrote Gov. Stein upon vetoing the bill on July 2. “Giving the Auditor this intrusive power may undermine our state’s efforts to recruit businesses to North Carolina. Additionally, the bill would remove the Office of State Auditor from the state’s cybersecurity efforts led by the Department of Information Technology, putting North Carolinians’ personal identifying information at heightened risk of a breach.”
NC Rep. Shelley Willingham voted to override the veto.
House Bill 193: Firearm Law Revisions
This bill will allow people with valid concealed carry permits to carry firearms on private school properties.
“This bill would make our children less safe,” Stein said upon vetoing the bill. “Just as we should not allow guns in the General Assembly, we should keep them out of our schools unless they are in the possession of law enforcement.”
NC Rep. Shelley Willingham voted to help override the veto.
