A Charlotte Observer payroll review shows more than 1,000 Mecklenburg County and Charlotte city employees earn six‑figure salaries, while the county median household income is about $87,005.

Twenty years after North Carolina’s first lottery ticket, the poorest counties still spend far more per person on tickets than wealthier areas, renewing equity questions as education funds flow.

A federal judge in Raleigh upheld North Carolina’s photo voter‑ID law while noting it can disproportionately burden minority voters. The ruling keeps the statute in place as appeals loom.

A Gaston County school board member’s Facebook post prompted calls for his resignation from local civil‑rights leaders and parents.

The North Carolina Association of Black Lawyers warns a DOJ proposal would let the attorney general review bar complaints first and could delay state discipline. Comments close April 6.

Sheriff Garry McFadden tapped retired CMPD Sgt. Ricky Robbins as Mecklenburg County’s new chief deputy; Robbins will oversee courts and field operations beginning April 1.

Kamala Harris is lining up fundraisers across the Deep South as she weighs a 2028 White House bid. The trip would test her fundraising and grassroots strength in Georgia, the Carolinas and Arkansas.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg put a one-year, $347,592 PowerSchool contract on the board agenda for hiring and evaluation tools even after the vendor’s December 2024 data breach. The deal would leave grades and attendance on Infinite Campus.

Gov. Josh Stein said Tuesday that LEAD will expand to Wilmington, Greensboro, Albemarle, Robeson, Gaston and Harnett counties to route low‑level cases to treatment. The move builds on existing pilots and state funding for diversion programs.

Nearly $26 million in state awards will fund broadband projects reaching 5,161 rural homes and businesses across 66 North Carolina counties.

Rallies tied to the No Kings movement are set across the Charlotte region on Saturday, March 28, with an Uptown gathering and suburban events in Concord, Fort Mill and more.

Gastonia sued a tow company and its owner, alleging cars were taken from downtown lots that lacked required signage and that workers demanded cash rather than card payments.

Catawba County commissioners are weighing a plan to fold three local school systems into one countywide district; a public hearing is set for April 20.