NC Power Struggle Reaches Supreme Court as Stein and Lawmakers File Final Arguments

North Carolina politics, Raleigh power, local accountability, and the Constitutionalist for Liberty perspective

By Peter Boykin The Constitutionalist For Liberty

GoRightNC.com | GoRightNews.com | GoRightNC.Substack.com | PeterBoykin.com

American Political Commentator | Citizen Journalist | Activist | Constitutionalist for Liberty

Follow at GoRightNews and PeterBoykin_ on X

Read and Sub to the SubStack:

https://gorightnc.substack.com/p/nc-power-struggle-reaches-supreme

Who gets to choose North Carolina’s appellate judges when a seat opens? And how much power can lawmakers transfer away from the governor when deciding who oversees state agencies?

Those questions are now headed toward a major confrontation at the North Carolina Supreme Court.

On Friday, October 30, Governor Josh Stein and Republican legislative leaders submitted their final written arguments in two related separation-of-powers cases. The justices have scheduled two and a half hours of oral arguments for November 10, one week after the general election.

The disputes involve rules for filling appellate judicial vacancies and appointments to state boards and commissions that influence utilities, construction standards, and other government decisions.

No new Supreme Court ruling has been issued. Friday’s development is the filing of final arguments ahead of the hearing. The cases could determine how much authority future governors retain, regardless of party.

Friday’s Filings Put Two Powers on Trial

The cases, Stein v. Berger and Stein v. Hall, pit the Democratic governor against Senate leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Destin Hall, both Republicans.

In one October 30 reply brief, Stein’s attorneys argue that the state Constitution reserves the appointment of appellate judges to the governor and that lawmakers cannot dictate the selection process. In another filing, legislative leaders defend their authority to distribute appointments among elected executive officers and other appointing bodies.

The dispute is bigger than the personalities involved. North Carolina has a plural executive branch, with a governor and other independently elected Council of State officials. The General Assembly also has substantial authority to organize agencies and define statutory duties.

The constitutional question is where that legislative authority ends and executive responsibility begins.

This is not the same lawsuit as the separate dispute over moving control of state and county elections-board appointments to State Auditor Dave Boliek. That case has its own appellate history. The October 30 briefs concern judicial vacancies and appointments to other state boards and commissions.

Who Gets to Pick the Next Appellate Judge?

A provision of Senate Bill 382, enacted in 2024, requires the governor to choose from three names recommended by the departing judge’s or justice’s political party when filling certain appellate vacancies.

Stein argues that Article IV, Section 19 of the North Carolina Constitution assigns the power to fill those vacancies to the governor. His lawyers say a party-generated shortlist leaves the governor with a constrained choice and gives political organizations influence the Constitution did not assign them.

Legislative leaders answer that the governor still makes the appointment. In their view, lawmakers may establish qualifications and a selection process without taking away the constitutional appointment power itself.

A three-judge trial panel blocked the provision, but the Court of Appeals reversed that ruling. The Supreme Court will now consider the dispute.

This is not a question about removing a sitting judge or changing the result of the November 3 election. It concerns the process that applies if an appellate seat becomes vacant.

The rule matters whichever party holds the governor’s office. A constitutional interpretation written for one political moment will govern future governors and judicial vacancies too.

Who Controls the Boards That Make State Policy?

The other dispute involves appointments to boards and commissions that carry out state law. The General Assembly has shifted some appointments away from the governor, including to other independently elected Council of State officials.

One prominent example is the North Carolina Utilities Commission. Under the disputed arrangement, State Treasurer Brad Briner appoints one of the three members previously appointed by the governor. The legislature appoints the commission’s other two members. Lower courts upheld that particular transfer.

Stein argues that dividing appointments among officials can deprive the governor of meaningful control over executive agencies. His lawyers also challenge voting arrangements for the Building Code Council and Residential Code Council, including a nine-vote requirement that they say can prevent action without legislative appointees’ support.

Legislative leaders disagree. Their October 30 brief argues that North Carolina’s Constitution does not require one executive officer to control every statutory board. They say distributing appointments can provide checks on concentrated power and reflect a broader range of viewpoints.

The lawmakers also ask the justices to reconsider earlier separation-of-powers decisions involving Governors Pat McCrory and Roy Cooper. Stein’s side argues that those precedents protect the executive branch from legislative overreach.

Neither side’s interpretation is a court finding. The justices must decide what the Constitution permits.

Why Alamance and Guilford Should Care

It can be easy to dismiss an appointments lawsuit as another Raleigh power struggle. But the boards involved help shape decisions that reach beyond the capital.

The Utilities Commission regulates matters that affect electricity service and rates. Building and residential code bodies influence standards that builders, inspectors, homeowners, and local governments must follow. Economic-development and public-health bodies can also affect communities across the state.

For Alamance and Guilford counties, those are practical concerns. Residents are already watching utility costs, new construction, industrial growth, and the demands placed on local infrastructure.

The October 30 filings do not announce a new electricity rate, building-code requirement, or local tax. Their significance is structural: who gets to select the officials making or reviewing those decisions, and which elected branch voters can hold responsible.

Supporters of broader legislative appointment authority argue that dispersed power prevents one governor from dominating agencies. Critics argue that lawmakers can weaken accountability by transferring authority to politically aligned officials while leaving the governor responsible for executing the laws.

A clear ruling could establish rules that outlast the current administration. An unclear one could invite more litigation and uncertainty over agency decisions.

Power Must Have Limits, No Matter Who Holds It

The Go Right with Peter Boykin Perspective

I believe North Carolina needs a government with clear constitutional boundaries. That includes the governor, the General Assembly, and every other elected official.

I do not believe one person should control every decision in Raleigh. North Carolina deliberately has multiple independently elected executive officers, and the legislature has legitimate authority to write laws and organize government.

But I also do not believe lawmakers should be able to rewrite the balance of power whenever the other party wins the governor’s office.

The judicial-vacancy question is especially important. If the Constitution gives the governor appointment authority, the legislature should not be able to make that authority meaningless through a political shortlist. On the other hand, if the Constitution permits reasonable qualifications, the court should explain where the line is drawn.

The same standard applies to boards and commissions. I want agencies that follow the law, publish their decisions, and answer to the people. I do not want accountability disappearing into a maze of appointments where everyone claims authority and nobody accepts responsibility.

This should not be decided by whether Josh Stein, Phil Berger, Destin Hall, or Brad Briner benefits today.

The test is whether the same rule would be defensible if every political party involved changed places tomorrow.

That is what constitutional government requires: limits on power that remain limits when our preferred side is in charge.

Raleigh’s Next Power Map Is in the Justices’ Hands

The final briefs sharpen a disagreement that has followed North Carolina government for years. Lawmakers say the state Constitution permits broad flexibility in structuring agencies and distributing appointments. The governor says that flexibility cannot override constitutional duties or undermine executive accountability.

The Supreme Court has not chosen a side in these latest appeals.

Its eventual decision could shape judicial vacancies, regulatory boards, and the relationship between governors and legislators for years to come. North Carolinians deserve a ruling grounded in the constitutional text and a clear explanation of who is responsible for exercising public power.

What To Watch

The North Carolina Supreme Court has scheduled November 10, 2026, for oral arguments in the two cases, with approximately two and a half hours reserved.

Watch whether the justices focus on Article IV’s language governing appellate vacancies, the state’s plural executive structure, and whether earlier decisions involving Governors McCrory and Cooper should continue to control board-appointment disputes.

Watch, too, for how the court treats the difference between an appointment power and effective control over an agency. The court could affirm, reverse, or narrow portions of the lower-court rulings.

No decision date has been announced. The November 3 election will not itself decide these cases, and the Supreme Court has not issued a new ruling on the merits.

Read more and subscribe at GoRightNews.Substack.com

Governor Josh Stein and Republican legislative leaders filed final arguments October 30 ahead of a November 10 North Carolina Supreme Court showdown. The cases could reshape who fills appellate judicial vacancies and who appoints officials to powerful state boards, with consequences for accountability, utilities, and building rules.

#GoRightNC, #GoRightNews, #NorthCarolina, #NCPolitics, #NCSupremeCourt, #JoshStein, #PhilBerger, #DestinHall, #SeparationOfPowers, #NCConstitution, #JudicialAppointments, #UtilitiesCommission, #GovernmentAccountability, #AlamanceCounty, #GuilfordCounty, #ConstitutionalistForLiberty

Sources

Governor Stein’s October 30 reply brief on appellate judicial vacancies, North Carolina Supreme Court:

https://www.ncappellatecourts.org/show-file.php?document_id=417002

Legislative leaders’ October 30 reply brief on board and commission appointments, North Carolina Supreme Court:

https://www.ncappellatecourts.org/show-file.php?document_id=417014

Governor Stein’s earlier brief on boards and commissions:

https://www.ncappellatecourts.org/show-file.php?document_id=415518

Legislative leaders’ earlier brief on judicial vacancies:

https://www.ncappellatecourts.org/show-file.php?document_id=415513

Carolina Journal, October 30, 2026, reporting on final briefs and November 10 arguments:

https://www.carolinajournal.com/stein-lawmakers-submit-final-words-in-showdown-at-top-nc-court/

North Carolina Constitution, Article III (Executive):

https://www.ncleg.gov/Laws/Constitution/Article3

North Carolina Constitution, Article IV (Judicial):

https://www.ncleg.gov/Laws/Constitution/Article4

Subscribe to the Substack for Daily News

Go Right News

Go Right NC

Gays For Liberty