Stein, who will be the state鈥檚 first Jewish governor, has singled out improving the state鈥檚 schools as his top priority as he switches roles from attorney general. He will succeed current Democratic governor Roy Cooper, who could not seek re-election as his term expired. 

Though his win was anticipated by experts as the Robinson campaign crumbled in the wake of multiple scandals over the last few weeks, the vote was historic for North Carolina, which typically sees wins below a 4-point margin. Stein claimed a .

In September, as polls began showing favor for Stein, reported Robinson called himself a 鈥淏lack Nazi鈥� and said 鈥渟lavery is not bad鈥� on a porn site. His staffers quit and donations dried up. Former endorser President Donald Trump distanced himself.

Addressing supporters on election night after the race was called, moderate Stein rejected 鈥渉ate鈥� and re-emphasized his commitment to working across party lines for progress. 

鈥淲e have big challenges ahead, but we have even bigger dreams to realize,鈥� . 鈥溾�e must reject the politics of division, fear and hate that keep us from finding common ground. We will go further when we go together. Not as Democrats, not as Republicans, not as independents, but as North Carolinians.鈥�

For schools, Stein campaigned on plans to improve youth mental health by recruiting counselors, nurses and social workers; increasing teacher pay; expanding career and vocational education; and providing universal school meals. Stein was endorsed by the state鈥檚 teachers union.聽

Robinson, in contrast, threatened to reject billions of federal funding for education and campaigned on expanding the voucher system that allows families to attend private schools with public funding. 

Robinson鈥檚 flare for hateful, anti-LGBTQ and misogynistic rhetoric, condemned by the NAACP, would have also likely fueled disrespect for educators, whom he called 鈥�,鈥� and distrust for the department of education, which he had said he wanted to get rid of entirely. 

While electing Stein, voters split their ballots to support Trump, but also elected a Democratic schools chief, overlooking party affinities in the interest of their childrens鈥� education. Democrat Mo Green, a large-district superintendent, claimed victory early Wednesday morning for state superintendent, earning more votes than right-wing homeschooling advocate and January 6 insurrectionist . 

Governor-elect Stein grew up in Chapel Hill, a college town, before studying history, law and government. He taught English and economics in Zimbabwe and served as a state senator for seven years before becoming attorney general in 2017. 

Stein has also promised to protect abortion rights, in a state where Republican lawmakers are discussing restricting access with a 6-week ban. 

A critical seat in the state legislature also flipped Democrat this Election Day, , . The body may now be forced to negotiate more with Stein. 

A moderate from an elite world versus a MAGA-backed veteran. 

An attorney general versus a lieutenant governor. An ardent supporter of public education versus a skeptic who called educators 鈥溾�� and wants to strip schools of federal funding. 

North Carolina鈥檚 governor race, dubbed the its final moments. But in the aftermath of several scandals and increasing political fanfare, the swing state known for nail-biting election days is almost certain to elect Democrat Josh Stein over Republican nominee Mark Robinson.

In late September, as polls were already showing a slight lead for Stein, reported Robinson called himself a 鈥淏lack Nazi鈥� and posted 鈥渟lavery is not bad鈥� anonymously on a porn site. Once his cheerleader, former President Donald Trump has since gone silent about Robinson and has not been seen with him in public, even while campaigning in North Carolina. In recent weeks, Robinson has taken to of Trump.

鈥淭he expectation is with everything dragging Robinson down, Stein should have a good night,鈥� said Michael Bitzer, North Carolina elections expert and politics chair at Catawba College. 

But beyond the controversy that鈥檚 encircled Robinson 鈥� who has kept education debates centered on eradicating the presence of 鈥減olitics鈥� and 鈥渋ndoctrination鈥� in schools, and 鈥� educators and students across the state told 麻豆精品 their top concerns are school safety and mental health, teacher pay and recruitment, and school funding. 

Their worries reach beyond the gubernatorial race, as the future of who will determine state education policy is in limbo. The state superintendent race is , with Democrat and former large district superintendent Mo Green holding a tiny lead over far-right candidate and homeschooling advocate, , who praised 鈥減atriots鈥� outside the White House during the January 6 insurrection.

But whether the next governor is Stein or Robinson, the state leader will also appoint individuals for , subject to confirmation by the assembly. At least in March 2025, and five of Cooper鈥檚 picks have yet to be confirmed. The agency is in charge of policy, including credentialing criteria and what textbooks get used statewide. 

鈥淓lection day has got everybody a little nervous in the education world in North Carolina,鈥� said Patrick Greene, president of the statewide school leader association and principal of Greene Central High School in Snow Hill, a town just over an hour鈥檚 drive southeast of Raleigh. 

鈥淚 think a lot of us are trying to get people to understand that the implications for this race go beyond party lines,鈥� Greene said. 鈥淲e need to do a better job of being advocates for people outside of the [education] world to understand how these policies directly affect them, their children, their communities.鈥� 

There鈥檚 a strong chance North Carolina鈥檚 next governor will also in the state legislature, where lawmakers have repeatedly overridden current Governor Roy Cooper鈥檚 vetos to push through of laws including a 12-week abortion ban, restrictions on sports and medical treatments for transgender youth, and limitations on classroom discussions about gender 鈥� moves condemned by the . 

鈥淭hose of us who are boots on the ground need progress. We would love for the General Assembly and whichever gubernatorial candidate and state superintendent candidate wins to find some common ground 鈥� let’s get some stuff done,鈥� Greene said, advocating for , teacher prep expansion and 鈥渁ll the things we want to do to make schools as good as they can be, rather than more and more rhetoric each time and blaming each other.鈥� 

Stein鈥檚 top priority as governor, according to , is to improve public education. He has also supported to address the youth mental health crisis, and wants to expand support and access to community colleges and Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

The two education issues Robinson and Stein have some alignment on are raising teacher pay and expanding career and technical education. The question of how to afford educating the state鈥檚 most vulnerable populations, however, is another matter.

鈥榃e need more than we鈥檙e getting鈥�

Both Robinson and superintendent candidate Morrow have pushed to expand school vouchers, which would send more public funds to private schools. Governor Cooper called the effort the .鈥�

Educators are also anxiously tracking the state supreme court as it wades into a , in which parents argued the state formula denied quality education to their impoverished, often rural areas. 

Today, the state where more residents live in rural areas ranks , more than $4,000 below average.聽

The vast majority of North Carolina children are educated in public schools, with a little over . Similar trends held true in Arizona, another swing state where a recent revealed low income families were not accessing the voucher programs marketed to them.

鈥淸Families] have options and they’re still choosing us,鈥� said Greene.

Further worrying education advocates, for the states鈥檚 schools. 鈥淚f I had my way about it, they鈥檇 send the check and I鈥檇 say, 鈥極h, no, you can have it. I don鈥檛 want your money. Your money comes with too many rotten obligations. We don鈥檛 want it.鈥欌��

Last school year, North Carolina received more than , which went predominantly to low-income schools, students with disabilities, career and technical education, and health programs like nutrition, mental health care and substance abuse support. 

鈥淭hat’s scary in the world of the people who legally are bound to provide that. We don’t know where the resources would come from,鈥� Greene added. 鈥淨uite honestly, we need more than we’re getting, I think like a lot of states that are predominantly rural.鈥� 

Legacies of 鈥榟ateful rhetoric鈥� 

Following in Trump鈥檚 footsteps, Robinson originally appealed to voters with a compelling personal story. He grew up a poor child in Greensboro, had faced multiple bankruptcies, and was a furniture-maker-turned lieutenant-governor in his first political bid after brief virality for a speech . 

Despite threats to preserving quality education for poor students, those with disabilities and LGBTQ youth, North Carolina students interviewed by 麻豆精品 are eager to vote and share optimism for the future.

鈥淲ith all of this really extremist speech, I get to see firsthand how students my age are two things: either unmotivated to vote or talk about politics at all, or they’re really motivated because they’re frustrated and angry,鈥� said Tai Stephan, 18, a first year student at the University of North Carolina and child of educators. 鈥淭hey’re educating themselves, they’re voting, they’re talking about things and to anyone that’s unmotivated.鈥� 

Voting for the first time, Stephan said he is supporting candidates promoting equality and safety. His campus is one of several universities acting , including ending 59 staff positions. People 鈥渟o beyond angry鈥� are acting to change the policy they believe to be unjust, hosting teach-ins, speeches and considering lawsuits, risking possible disciplinary action. 

鈥淭hey’re so frustrated that it goes beyond their educational prestige. It’s really scary to see a lot of groups at risk for losing the oasis they have in within schools鈥� It shows that a lot of minority students are being attacked via legislation and where our country is moving if we don’t get out and vote.鈥�   

For Evan Keith, 18 and a senior at Forest Hills High School in the southern, central North Carolina town of Marshville, it鈥檚 been difficult to see his peers feel discouraged by politics, with many thinking 鈥渆ven if we vote for a certain person, not a lot will change.鈥�

At a time when educators and students are also fueling charges to curb the prevalence of school shootings, a Stein governorship feels like a safer choice.

鈥淚 hope that our governor, whoever it is, will really push to make safety a top priority, and mental health, as [they] really do affect everything: grades, performances on tests, and job confidence with our employers,鈥� said Keith, also a first time voter this November. 

While it remains to be seen how Hurricane Helene recovery, early voting has yielded a. 

Education advocates are urging voters to to 鈥渄o their homework and find the person that’s gonna help kids the most,鈥� said Greene. 鈥淎nd if they don’t know, talk to somebody who works in education, because usually we’re happy to tell you.鈥�

She鈥檚 been homeschooling her children for over a decade, participated in the 鈥淪top the Steal鈥� rally that preceded the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the , and has used choice words like 鈥渋ndoctrination centers鈥� to describe public schools. And then there鈥檚 the 2020 tweet she said the media won鈥檛 let her forget 鈥� the one in which she called for a of former President Barack Obama. 

In an interview with 麻豆精品, Morrow, who has about her past tweets, downplayed the comments. 鈥淒id I say things in jest? Absolutely,鈥� she said. The former nurse unexpectedly ousted Republican incumbent Catherine Truitt in the primary and now faces Maurice 鈥淢o鈥� Green, a former district superintendent, in the general election. She brushes off her as just 鈥渁 political thing.鈥� 

鈥淭hat’s between adults,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat’s not what I think should be happening in our classrooms.鈥�

Morrow isn鈥檛 the only Jan. 6 participant vying for office this November. for a , and an of the rally is running for the Texas House. But if elected, Morrow would become the only protester responsible for more than 2,700 schools and a $13 billion education budget.

She counts her nine years teaching science and Spanish for a homeschool co-op as her primary qualification for the job and said that after six years talking to parents and educators, she has a 鈥渃lear understanding鈥� of what voters are looking for in a state schools chief, starting with a strong focus on academics and character development. Green, meanwhile, is trumpeting his experience leading an education agency and advocating for increased education funding at a time when Republican lawmakers are . 

In interviews, Morrow espouses policies 鈥� like a scientific approach to and in math 鈥� that could bridge the partisan divide in a state with a Democratic governor and Republican-controlled House and Senate. But her past actions and occasionally extreme language are alienating would-be allies.

鈥淚’m fearful of the rhetoric,鈥� said Marcus Brandon, who leads CarolinaCAN, part of a network of policy and advocacy groups that support school choice. He pushed for expansion of the state鈥檚 voucher program, and said while Morrow is 鈥済ood for my issue on paper,鈥� he thinks Green is more qualified. A former lawyer, Green led the Guilford County Schools, which includes Greensboro, for seven years.

鈥淲e need a strong public school system,鈥� Brandon said. 鈥淪eventy-five percent of our kids are going to go there.鈥� 

Following her surprise victory in the March primary, Morrow鈥檚 campaign attracted a from North Carolina鈥檚 business community. But she lags behind Green in fundraising. At the Green had over $578,000 on hand to Morrow鈥檚 $50,600. 

Whoever wins faces a system with critical challenges, like record-setting and flat funding. According to the Education Law Center鈥檚 most recent , North Carolina ranks 48th in per-student funding, almost $5,000 below the national average of $16,131. Morrow argues there鈥檚 already plenty of money for education and districts just need to 鈥渢riage.鈥� 

鈥淲e need someone who can lead us in a way that prioritizes students,鈥� said Lauren Fox, senior director of policy and research at the Public School Forum of North Carolina, a think tank that supports public schools. She hopes the next superintendent will continue Truitt鈥檚 practice of appointing a at a time when teachers currently feel 鈥� and that their voices aren’t being heard.鈥� 

Green agrees and often the public that Morrow, during some of her Facebook live posts early in the pandemic, used words like 鈥渃esspool of evil and lies鈥� to describe public schools. Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the Republican candidate for governor, has made similar disparaging remarks, calling teachers 鈥渨icked people鈥� in last year. 

鈥淥ur educators are being disrespected,鈥� Green told 麻豆精品. The state ranks 42nd in starting teacher pay, according to the latest National Education Association . 鈥淚t鈥檚 especially challenging to bring folks into this really important profession when you’re not paying them well enough.鈥� 

During his tenure, from 2008 to 2015, Guilford saw graduation rates climb nearly 10 percentage points to over 89% and rising scores on college entrance exam. 

Recruited to run by outgoing Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, Green said he鈥檚 better positioned to press for state spending increases while helping districts adjust to tighter budgets as federal relief funds dry up. He took over the Guilford district at the start of the Great Recession and said one of his first tasks was to return money to the state so officials could balance the budget.

After leaving Guilford, Green led the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, a philanthropy that funds of education, social and environmental causes. In Guilford, he supported charter schools and encouraged choice within the district. But he said, 鈥淲e can’t have great choices in our public schools when you don’t provide even close to adequate resources for them.鈥�

His point in a state where a group of poor districts sued in 1994 to get enough funding to provide students with a basic education. The foundation he led funded efforts to determine how much the state should provide for programs like pre-K and teacher preparation. The conservative state Supreme Court, however, is now deciding whether to overturn a 2022 opinion directing North Carolina to spend $800 million to improve education in the poorest parts of the state.

Green called the foundation 鈥渁n organization that certainly tries to lift up marginalized communities.鈥� 

But Morrow has seized on Green鈥檚 ties to the association to label him and extremist. She points to the organization鈥檚 financing of who push for reducing the presence of school resource officers to curb the school-to-prison pipeline.

She said she鈥檚 watching out for teachers by making student discipline the centerpiece of her platform. She cited showing almost 1,500 assaults by students on public school employees during the 2022-23 school year and attended a recent in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, to address school safety. 

Morrow thinks she鈥檚 been by educators in the public system and insists she only decided to homeschool when her oldest daughter, who had learning disabilities, wasn鈥檛 making progress. 

鈥淪he was having math tutoring every day, and she still wasn’t learning math facts,鈥� she said. 

She eventually homeschooled her other four children, but stressed that she doesn鈥檛 think all public schools are bad. As an example, she pointed to her local Wake County district鈥檚 . 

鈥淭his whole idea that because your children are not in public school, that means you hate public school 鈥� nothing could be further from the truth,鈥� she said.

Morrow described any past online vitriol as 鈥渞hetorical hyperbole鈥� that wasn鈥檛 鈥渂othering anybody鈥� until the media focused on it.

But at a June conservative gathering called America Day, south of Greensboro, some of had a familiar ring. 

鈥淭he greatest threat to the constitutional Republic that we call home is the indoctrination happening in our public school system today,鈥� she said. In other interviews, she has voiced to discussions of race and gender in the classroom.

Morrow said she holds a monthly Zoom meeting with teachers, but has twice to share the stage with her Democratic opponent. 

鈥淪he is running for office by running against the current system,鈥� said Christopher Cooper, a political science professor at Western Carolina University. If Green wants to draw the spotlight away from her, Cooper said he must 鈥渞aise the salience鈥� of the office.

鈥淭he superintendent of public instruction is not, in normal circumstances, an office that voters know a lot about,鈥� he said. And most statewide races 鈥渄o not draw attention outside of the borders of North Carolina,鈥� making this chief鈥檚 race unique. 

But ultimately, the outcome in a purple state will likely rest not on either candidate鈥檚 platform, he said, but on whether Robinson, the GOP candidate for governor, and former President Donald Trump prevail on election night.

鈥淚f Morrow does win,鈥� he said, 鈥渋t will likely be on the backs of a larger number of Republican wins in North Carolina.鈥�