Local political and business leaders gathered in downtown Wilmington Thursday to hear gubernatorial candidates Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson and Attorney General Josh Stein talk about important issues for not only North Carolinians, but also those in the Cape Fear Region.
For the past two years, North Carolina has been named the top state for business by CNBC, and many have acknowledged Wilmington's contributions to this ranking with its focus on workforce and entrepreneurship.
Not only is Wilmington a hot spot for business, but New Hanover County also has played a pivotal role in the state's previous gubernatorial races with the winning candidate also winning in the county for over 125 years.
Hosted by the Wilmington Business Journal, the Power Breakfast Series gave Robinson and Stein the opportunity to make their case on various issues, including affordable housing, affordable healthcare, public education, the workforce and infrastructure. Both candidates also answered questions from the audience.
Education
Both candidates expressed strong passion for the state's public education system, specifically educators.
Robinson's approach to the state's education system aims to take learning back to a more traditional approach and to remove inappropriate materials from the classrooms, including what he considers pornographic material.
"Not fit for the consumption of their six o' clock viewers, but they're somehow fit for the consumption of fifth-graders," Robinson said when referring to television stations blurring the photos in a book that he opposed.
He said the education system should focus more on the tenants of capitalism and how it works as well as teaching financial literacy to students. Robinson stressed that success does not come from just attending a four-year university, but that going into careers in trades are just as successful.
Stein acknowledged that the state has some of the finest educational institutions and that if he is elected, he will support educators. He also shared the same support for those who want to pursue technical education and apprenticeship programs.
Stein and Robinson both said they support raises for teachers.
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Healthcare
Affordable healthcare for North Carolinians was a major focus for Stein as he addressed his efforts as attorney general to take big pharmaceutical drug companies to court for their role in the opioid crisis. New Hanover County earned nearly $34 million from the settlement to help those struggling with addiction.
Stein also talked about how through bipartisan work, the backlog of rape testing kits has been eliminated throughout the state, further supporting survivors of sexual assault. He also acknowledged current Gov. Roy Cooper's work that expanded Medicaid in December 2023.
Stein said he will continue to focus on tackling the fentanyl crisis and helping local law enforcement agencies to recruit and retain well trained officers.
"Putting people first, that's what government service is supposed to be about," Stein said. "That is what I've done as attorney general and that is what I will do as governor."
He stressed that every North Carolinian deserves to have good healthcare no matter where they live and how much money they earn.
Affordable housing
As people flock to North Carolina's coast, specifically the Wilmington Metro Area, which ranked top 10 in fastest-growing metro areas in the country, Stein said housing demands have done up but the supply hasn't been there to match those demands.
Robinson said the affordable housing crisis should be handled by lowering taxes and unnecessary regulations for renters and homebuilders without damaging the environment or breaking the rules.
"We've got to do it folks," Robinson said. "We're not getting any less people. In fact, we're getting more people."
Prioritizing the local workforce
Both Robinson and Stein said they support strong workforce development, which is one of the Cape Fear region's strong suits, especially in northern New Hanover County, where industrial parks are popping up.
Robinson, who is one of 10 children and grew up with little, said he got his standard and appreciation for hard work from his mother, who was born in Burgaw. He said she worked hard to provide for him and his siblings after his father died.
He said he spent much of his working career in furniture manufacturing, but he lost two jobs because the jobs were sent to other countries due to the North American Free Trade Agreement.
"One of the most painful experiences of my life was watching those folks who had put decades of work into that company and have the rug pulled out from underneath them," Robinson said.
Wilmington area specifics
Stein was asked by an audience member about how he would advocate for a new bridge to replace the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge and he said that infrastructure is one of his priorities and that he will continue to try to work with the secretary of transportation to speed the process along.
As attorney general, Stein also has worked to make sure the Cape Fear region has clean drinking water by taking Chemours and DuPont to court after they discharged GenX and other PFAS chemicals from their Fayetteville plant into the Cape Fear River.
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