What A Day - Are Republicans Losing Their Grip In North Carolina?

Episode Date: October 7, 2026

The Senate Leadership Fund, a super PAC aligned with a top Senate Republican, began dialing back its funding for the North Carolina Senate race last week and shifted it elsewhere. Now a group affiliated with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, WinSenate, is doing the same. Jane talks with Anderson Clayton, chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party, about what's happening in the race to replace retiring Republican Senator Tom Tillis and other races across the state.Show Notes: Call Congress – 202-224-3121 Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/y4y2e9jy What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcast Follow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/ For a transcript of this episode, please email [e-mail]

I think 2024 was an election that we didn't just lose to Donald Trump. We lost to the couch in a lot of ways, especially for our own party. And so making sure that we're talking to rural Democrats again about how they've got candidates that are running again for those state legislative races. Because for so long, Raleigh has been doing a disservice to people across rural North Carolina. It's Wednesday, October 7th. I'm Jane Koston, and this is Wadadadaday. Secretary of State and Jack of All Trids, Marco Rubio, is in Greece today, speaking alongside the Greek foreign minister about the importance of America's European allies.

And of course, how well America is doing in the war in Iran. The Straits of Hormuz are open. There's almost as much oil flowing out now as there was before this conflict began, so they've lost complete control of the straits. And their economy, and it's not only in the name free fall now, the Iranian economy is about to reach a place that few countries in the world have been in terms of how bad it's going to get. And it's all the fault, all the fault of the rattle,

medical Shia clerics that make the decisions in that country. As Little Marco just said that the strait is open, an Iranian official told Fars news agency that the strait is closed and the illegal routes along the waterway where, quote, small boat smuggling oil and transferring it to tankers will also be closed soon, according to Reuters. He said that the strait will remain closed and under full control of the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran until, quote, Iran's legitimate demands are met. This all means that the cost of attempting to go through the straight is astronomical. According to the Financial Times, some oil tanker captains are being paid up to $100,000 a month to go through the straight.

So I guess open can mean open if you're willing to pay through the nose for it and risk being bombed. Today marks the three-year anniversary of the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attack that killed 1,200 people. In Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his opponents are putting the attack at the heart of their campaigns as they prepare for the first elections since the war in Gaza began. That war, as you probably know, has been horrifying in its devastation. According to the Associated Press, more than one out of every ten people from Gaza's pre-war population has been killed or wounded by Israeli fire. Netanyahu's opponents want him to pay for the failures that led to the deadliest day in Israel.

Israel's 78-year history and plunged the country into a series of inconclusive wars. According to Axios, Netanyahu is the only senior national security official who was in office during the October 7th attacks who hasn't resigned. Shocking news. The Trump brothers, Eric and Donald Jr., are getting rich off companies that have received federal contracts. According to an ABC news analysis, defense tech companies have made $6 billion in active or promised federal contracts since the brothers invested in them. A spokesperson for the Trump brothers told ABC News, quote, Don and Eric are experienced business leaders who have built and invested in businesses across a wide range of industries for decades, long before their father first ran for public office. Sure. But I want to talk about the midterms and a state where the GOP is saying,

no thank you. Joining me is Anderson Clayton, chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party. Anderson Clayton, welcome back to Wad Today. Thanks for having me. We really appreciate it. So Trump won North Carolina with about 50% of the vote in 2020 and 2024. Now we're at the point where the GOP is basically declaring North Carolina a lost cause. They're pulling money out in the Senate race. What's happening? I mean, I think that Republicans know that Roy Cooper is one hell of a candidate and extremely hard to beat,

especially when he's never lost an election in North Carolina statewide. We are confident, not cocky in every way, shape, and form because just as Republicans have pulled money out of the state, Democrats did too right afterwards. And we know that every single election in North Carolina has been won and lost on the margins. And so we're still treating this like we're 20 points down. And elections are not won and lost in November. They're one and lost in October. And so we're knocking doors every single day, making sure that we're getting out across the state. And if you want to be part of that work, I hope that you go to NCDP.org slash knock and join us to be able to do it.

I know that Cooper was a fairly popular governor. he's now running for Senate. What is he doing, do you think, that that is proving effective? And that, you know, what's his messaging been in the state that you think has been resonating with people? Make stuff cost less, which is a really easy way. And it's not saying affordability, which is, I think one of the things that Democrats have done wrong this year, I'd say across the country has talked about a word that nobody really knows what it means. And I think that Governor Cooper has done an incredible job, making sure that he is speaking to real issues across North Carolina, talking a lot about public education funding in the state. because it's one of the number one economic drivers across rural North Carolina. We are still a state that has the second highest population of rural people in it besides the state of Texas. And so making sure that you're reaching out to a demographic that maybe is voted for Donald Trump in the last three election cycles, but does feel like they've been taken advantage of by this president with high gas prices and also high utility cost across North Carolina too, which is what we've been seeing.

Duke Energy's been taking advantage of people not just in our state, but across southeastern United States right now. Yeah, I think that anyone who lives in kind of SEC country can tell you about Duke energy. But, you know, it's not just a Senate race. There are 14 House seats. There's a Supreme Court Associate Justice seat. There are races up and down the ballot. What are the most important issues people are talking about and voting on? Obviously, the high cost of living.

But what's going on in North Carolina that's driving people to the polls? I mean, I think that definitely seeing a state legislature that's waited a thousand days, to pass a state budget in North Carolina that's prioritized redistricting for a president who honestly has done nothing for the state of North Carolina to bring costs down like he ran on and promised to do so for people across this state. And what we've seen is a state legislature that's deprioritized people and prioritize powerful monopolies like Duke Energy across North Carolina. And so I've got 170 state legislative candidates that are running to make sure that people have got something to vote for this year on the ballot, not just against. And we've also got the

most important North Carolina State Supreme Court seat up this year with Justice Anita Earls, who is running to keep her seat on the bench. She's the only black woman that is running statewide and that exist on the bench in North Carolina right now. And we want desperately to keep her there because she has had the history of defending the civil rights that Republicans are trying to disenfranchise and take away every step of the race this year. So you mentioned that North Carolina has one of the highest populations of rural voters. When you talk to folks in rural areas in North Carolina. What are they saying about the candidates? What are they saying about this election? What are they saying about why they're voting or what they're voting about?

I mean, I genuinely do believe that people feel like they were taking advantage of and that they were lied to. And a lot of the voters that we're talking to are not just, you know, or Democrats are unaffiliated in rural communities. A lot of these voters that were pulling over and that we're trying to talk to are Trump voters or previously Republican voters that maybe didn't turn out in the last election because they didn't feel like they had somebody to vote for on the ballot. And I think 2024 was an election that we didn't just lose to Donald Trump. We lost to the couch in a lot of ways, especially for our own party. And so making sure that we're talking to rural Democrats again about how they've got candidates that are running again for those state legislative

races because for so long, Raleigh has been doing a disservice to people across rural North Carolina, defunding public education, taking away public school money and taking it and putting in private school vouchers. North Carolina has the number one most accountable, most unaccountable private school voucher program in the entire country right now. And that's because of the fact that regardless of your income status, you are able to apply to money out of public schools in this state and follow your child to a private school, even if you could go ahead and pay that private school tuition without it. And it is crippling almost 80 counties in the state that rely on that to be their number one

economic development. And I just, I think that so many Republicans right now are not looking to not just what is Congress done, but also what have your state legislator is done in your own backyard to make it harder for you to live and to stay in the communities that you've always grown up in, especially if you're in a place like North Carolina that does have such a high demographic of people in these communities because we've got the two economic drivers in our state, agriculture and manufacturing. And I like to joke with folks, it's not AI that's powering North Carolina. It is ag still in every way, shape, and form. And I think that it's important for folks to remember. You also have the benefit of the Research Triangle and some

really outstanding universities that have attracted so many people to the state of North Carolina, including a host of immigrants. And I know that North Carolina has one of the highest numbers of immigrant communities, especially a lot of folks who have emigrated from Southeast Asia. When you talk to immigrants, especially having to indoor ice and everything that's going on, what are they saying and how are Democrats reaching out to immigrant communities in North Carolina? Making sure that we're working with partner organizations on the ground, because I think that right now that fear of coming out to vote is still very real in communities that have been threatened.

you know, we saw with Gregory Bovino coming into Charlotte that had Charlotte's Web, that it was organizations like C. Embrin, C.L. Pueblo, North Carolina and Carolina Migrant Network, who were the three organizations on the ground really engaging in our Hispanic community and also looking at both of our South Asian community populations in Cary and in Morrisville, particularly in Wake County that were also heavily targeted. And so also looking at people like Senator Haseefatme this year, who were trying to make sure that we reelect in the North Carolina State Senate in a very competitive state Senate seat because also representation and making sure that communities have that in our legislature right now and also in their community, both at the city council level and the county commission

level to me is extremely important because you're going to have and you're going to want to see trusted messengers right now who are telling you it's okay to still come out and vote. Because if you don't have that and you don't see that in this party, you're not going to be able, I think, to trust somebody who may look like me in that sense too. And I think that there's an opportunity that we've got to make sure that we're uplifting the right voices on the ground this year to be able to be those messengers in their own communities. And so a very big thank you, though, to the organizations on the ground across North Carolina who are doing that hard work right now and across this country

who have made sure that we've got activists and organizations that are prepped with it. We'll get back to my conversation with Anderson Clayton in just a moment. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. If you thought about trying therapy with our long-term partner, BetterHelp, insurance options may now be available nationwide, with an average co-pay for eligible members of just $23 per session. because stress does not politely wait until world mental health day. Burnout does not RSVP, and your brain definitely does not check the calendar before deciding

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Let's get back to my conversation with Anderson Clayton. Now, I want to talk about a ballot issue that North Carolinians are going to be voting on. Now, North Carolina already has voter ID. So why is voter ID on the ballot in 26? What's happening here? Because Republicans think that they're going to juice their own turnout, I guess, in some way, shape, or form. But that's honestly all that this is to me is to make sure that Republicans are trying to turn out and vote because they're not going to based on what's happening in either Raleigh or in Congress this year. And so voter ID laws disproportionately impact people that are homeless right now in North Carolina,

that are elderly in North Carolina, that also that are young in the state of North Carolina, because not every person, especially if you grow up in Wake County or in Charlotte, gets a driver's license when they turn 16, unlike if you're in more rural parts of the state that may do so. And so it is looking at targeting disproportionately groups of people that already are less likely to turn out to vote because of other avenues. And so we're trying to make sure that we're reaching out to folks this year knowing you can go get a voter ID card at your board of elections office locally if you need to and in the ways in which that we already have voter ID unfortunately on the books in North Carolina, thanks to

Republicans in the General Assembly. They're just trying to make sure that they keep it there and that Democrats don't have the eventually ability to take it away eventually, which is what we want to be able to do. So you said something earlier that was interesting, which was like, you know, don't use the word affordability. Just say make stuff cost less. What other lessons do you think Democrats should be taking from Roy Cooper's campaign or from the work that you're doing in North Carolina that might work somewhere else. I mean, I think definitely we've seen state parties across this country and also just candidates across the country this year step up and run for office. We can't seed ground to Republicans anywhere. And if you don't have a name on the ballot,

you're doing that already. And so a very big shot at places like Idaho who competed or who completed and contested every race on the ballot this year for their state legislature. South Carolina did the same thing. And I just, I think that we're starting to see it out of states where typically you've got a more Republican territory that's a lot harder versus candidates to be able to go into. And so really impressed by that. Roy Cooper has shown up across North Carolina, though, as well. And I don't think that we can negate the fact that a lot of the areas that are seeing Democrats for the first time this year haven't seen a Democrat for the last 20 years. And we want to make sure that that's not the case ever again. And so making sure that Democrats are using our surrogates

wisely. And I would love for people to hear me when I say that is that if you are an elected official in a safe blue district and you're going into a state where you've got a territory and opportunity, I wish you would touch foot in a different area. And folks can say what they want to about Governor Gavin Newsom, but when he came to North Carolina, I looked at him and I was like, I want you to go out to Union County because Monroe, North Carolina has got a MAGA mayor that needs to get out of office this year. And I need help making sure that Union County, which is in a redder part of the state, is turning out to vote. And so the opportunity to listen to some of the folks on the ground about where you're going and the places where you're driving out to, I think,

would just be really helpful to have some of that local knowledge and energy. But that's just my hopeful message to national folks that are looking at office in the future because I desperately think that when surrogates are coming to places, sometimes it's a hit and a miss indication, you know? Yeah, no, I totally understand. Like, you don't need to go to just like a safe blue area. You need to be showing that you can show up anywhere. So we've got under a month, a couple of weeks until the election. What are you going to be looking for and what's the most important work that you think Democrats in North Carolina need to be doing to ensure that Democrats

don't just win a Senate seat, but keep good judges in office, get maga mares out of office. What's the work that needs to happen? Making sure that you're talking to every single person that is in your network right now. You know, you're the number one place where people get their information is honestly not online. It's from the people that are around them. It's their networks. It's the most trusted source that they've got. And so you are, text bank your friends and your family and your Rolodex, your phone, the person that you've not talked to in 10 years that you went to high school with that maybe isn't going to turn out in vote this year unless someone reminds them to. You know who they are. And I promise you that you've got the power to move them to a polling location

much faster than anybody else does on a campaign this year or otherwise. And so I hope that you will be that trusted messenger for your friends, your community and the networks that you're within and make sure that you get out and that you know how to vote this year because in North Carolina, they are trying to throw people off the voter rolls and have been for the last two years that Republicans have taken over control of the state board of elections in our state. So make sure if you are a North Carolina voter that you are checking your voter registration by going to NCSBE.gov and making sure that you're looking up and making sure that you're valid voter registration is geared up and ready to go because October the 15th through October the 31st

is early voting in North Carolina and we want to make sure that we see y'all out at the polls. But all of the work that I feel like as a state chair, every bit of the work that we've done from last election cycle because I feel like it's been nonstop. In 2024, we had a Supreme Court justice race with Allison Riggs that was denied by Republicans for six months after that election. And our team, our 25 person year-round team has not stopped since then. And so I'm looking at the month of October and thinking, bit of the cylinders are all firing in every round they possibly do so. And we're just ready to keep running through the tape, you know. Yes, I had the pleasure of meeting Justice Riggs last year.

She's fantastic. I have to ask, so Michael Watley, who's running for that Senate seat as a Republican candidate, I feel like we have not heard very much from him about what he would want to do if he were to win the Senate seat. It's been interesting to me that Republicans, while holding power, are still trying to use fear mongering about Democrats rather than bragging about their own achievements, probably because they don't have very many. But what does Michael Whatley want? I mean, your guess is as good as my answer, to be honest with you. The only thing that I know that that man would do is be a snake oil salesman essentially and go back up there and be a big oil lobbyist just like he's done. Only this time he'd be an elected official. And I don't know about

you, but that's not the person that I'm interested in going on to represent me in office. And it's sort of funny when I talked to other state party chairs across the country about Michael Wally, Jane Cleb out Nebraska always looks at me and she's like, you know how we know Michael Wally is the guy that tried to get through the Keystone XL pipeline at one point in time. And so it's not just across North Carolina or across the southeastern part of the country that he's known in, too. It's everywhere. And so when I think about Roy Cooper defeating him in this election cycle, I think about him being able to stand up for people across this country who have seen him try to take over their backyards. And especially when it comes to environmental rights and regulations,

Michael Wally is not going to be somebody that's going to go up there and hold energy monopolies accountable. And that's exactly what I know North Carolinians need right now in this state. Anderson, thank you so much, as always, for joining me. Thank you. That was my conversation with Anderson Clayton, chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party. Before we go, CricketCon is happening in Washington, D.C., from November 5th to November 7th. Expect potential presidential candidates, campaign strategists, pollsters, organizers, journalists, creators, and of course, cricket podcast hosts like me.

CricketCon comes just days after the midterms, and however they go, there are some big questions we need to work through, like, who is allowed to live and work in the United States without fearing for their freedom? Will we reinstate checks and balances to hold our courts accountable? And how do we maintain election integrity? If you want to be a part of that conversation and more, and if you believe in democracy, community, and fighting for the future, now's the time to grab your ticket to CrookedCon 26. Head to CricketCon.com to grab your tickets now. That's all for today. If you like the show, make sure to subscribe, leave a review.

I don't know if Ken Paxton's campaign fought this ad through and tell your friends to listen. And if you aren't reading, and not just about, well, this. When missing posters go up, Ken Paxton takes them down. Ken Paxton for U.S. Senate. Like me, what a day is also a nightly newslet. Check it out and subscribe at crooked.com slash subscribe. I'm Jane Koston. And good news for Ken Paxton.

President Donald Trump said today that Paxton was, quote, the best attorney general of the whole country. Bad news. Trump has an approval rating of 37%. What today is a production of Crooked Media. Our show is produced by Emily 4, Erica Morrison, and Adrian Hill. Our team includes Haley Jones, Greg Walters, Matt Berg, Adam Lippert, Johanna Case, and Desmond Taylor.

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