NC governor’s race: VP watch, DHHS findings, new Stein and Robinson ads

Welcome to the governor’s race edition of our Under the Dome politics newsletter. I’m Dawn Vaughan , The News & Observer’s Capitol bureau chief.

National politics dominated the stage this past week, with President Joe Biden leaving the presidential race, ushering in what is likely to be Vice President Kamala Harris ’ nomination in August as the Democratic Party’s candidate running against former President Donald Trump . That also led to a lot of attention on North Carolina, given that current Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper is among those being considering as a running mate for Harris.

Cooper spoke in Raleigh on Thursday at his first Harris campaign event since Democrats have switched up the top of the ticket. He, like other Democrats being considered for the VP slot, responded to reporter questions by saying he’ll “respect her process.”

But given that he’s on her list, and he headlined a Harris campaign press conference, it’s also a given that myself and other reporters would ask him about the matter at hand. You can read more about what he said here .

NC Gov. Roy Cooper, a Harris VP contender, says JD Vance is Trump’s ‘mini-me’

The presidential race hasn’t sucked all the air out of the room, though, and there’s still a North Carolina’s governor’s race with news this week, too, between Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson and Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein .

Balanced Nutrition owes money to DHHS

Robinson’s wife, Yolanda Hill , shut down her child food programs nonprofit, Balanced Nutrition , at the end of April after months of scrutiny.

This past week, new records from the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services show that Balanced Nutrition owes the state more than $130,000. The nonprofit has two weeks to pay or appeal the findings. Hill’s attorney wrote a letter earlier this year to DHHS’ attorney saying that Hill is being targeted because of Robinson. You can read the latest on that from my colleague Kyle Ingram and me, here .

Nonprofit run by NC Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson’s wife owes the state $130,000, records show

New Stein, Robinson ads

The Summer Olympics began this weekend, and airing on NBC’s streaming service, Peacock, is a new ad from Stein’s campaign. The ad, which will go statewide this week, features a voter talking about Stein’s response as attorney general to the fentanyl crisis.

Debbie Dalton of Cornelius is featured in the ad, talking about her late son, who died of an accidental fentanyl overdose. In the ad she says she usually votes Republican, so I checked her voter registration and she is registered as a Democrat. I talked to her about why she supports Stein, and about her voting record. You can also read more about that here .

Why Democrat Josh Stein’s new campaign ad for NC governor features a Trump voter

Meanwhile, the Republican Governors Association is funding a new ad on Robinson’s behalf that attacks Stein’s law enforcement record, saying he is soft on crime. RGA reports that it is spending more than $1 million on the governor’s race in North Carolina.

Stay informed about #ncpol

Don’t forget to follow our Under the Dome tweets and listen to our Under the Dome podcast to stay up to date. Our new episode posts Monday morning, and I’m joined by our Washington, D.C., correspondent Danielle Battaglia . We talk about the state of the presidential race, what we might expect at the Democratic National Convention in August, and her coverage of the Republican National Convention.

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