Asheville NC Politics & Government

Asheville NC Politics & Civic News — Page 5

Covering Asheville City Council, Buncombe County Council, North Carolina General Assembly, and your federal representatives in Washington, D.C. Accountability journalism for Buncombe County residents.

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POLITICS NOW

POLITICSAppeals Court Sets Saturday Deadline ◆ POLITICSIntelligence Chief Warns Iran Is Stepping Up Plots ◆ POLITICSJustice Department Sues Over Alaska Senate Certification ◆ POLITICSFederal Workers Rally Outside VA Hospital in Asheville ◆ POLITICSSupreme Court Lets New Hampshire Bar Student IDs ◆ POLITICSOutside Money Tops $18M in Arizona Race for Feely, Shah Seat ◆ POLITICSTrump Rallies for Hinson in Sioux City ◆ POLITICSNC Crime Commission Hosts Grant-Writing Workshop Oct. 27 ◆ POLITICSCooper Presses Cost-of-Living Pitch in NC Senate Race ◆ POLITICSThree Constitutional Amendments Face Asheville Voters ◆ POLITICSAsheville Voters Weigh Ager, Balkcom in Open NC-11 House Race ◆ POLITICSRussia Frees Jailed Michigan Man After Trump Appeal to Putin ◆

Buncombe County sits inside one of the most layered governmental structures in the region. Residents answer to at least five levels of elected authority simultaneously: the federal government, statewide offices, Buncombe County Council, Asheville City Council, and school district boards — each a separately elected body covering its own geographic slice of the county.

Buncombe’s federal delegation includes US Rep. Chuck Edwards (NC District 11) and Senators Ted Budd and Thom Tillis.

Buncombe County Council controls property tax millage, land-use zoning outside city limits, and fee-in-lieu-of-tax agreements. Downtown zoning decisions and the Asheville Police Department budget run through Asheville City Council. State funding for schools, roads, and Medicaid flows from the North Carolina General Assembly. The Buncombe County Elections and Voter Registration Office administers local balloting under NC Election Commission oversight.

HEREAsheville covers Buncombe County Council meetings, Asheville City Council sessions, North Carolina General Assembly session, federal delegation votes and town halls, school board meetings, and candidate filing windows. We also pull FOIA-sourced travel records and contracts at both the city and county level. If it shapes how Buncombe County is governed, it’s HERE.

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Oct 24 Appeals Court Sets Saturday Deadline

Oct 24 Intelligence Chief Warns Iran Is Stepping Up Plots

Oct 24 Justice Department Sues Over Alaska Senate Certification

Oct 24 Federal Workers Rally Outside VA Hospital in Asheville

Oct 23 Supreme Court Lets New Hampshire Bar Student IDs

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What do you think: Appeals Court Sets Saturday Deadline?

Strongly support — this is overdue 38%

Cautious support — depends on the details 23%

Skeptical — need to see the cost first 17%

Oppose — not the right direction for Asheville 22%

What do you think: Intelligence Chief Warns Iran Is Stepping Up Plots?

Strongly support — this is overdue 30%

Cautious support — depends on the details 28%

Skeptical — need to see the cost first 17%

Oppose — not the right direction for Asheville 25%

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Oct 24, 2026

Appeals Court Sets Saturday Deadline

LOS ANGELES — California has until noon Saturday to answer the federal government in a fast-moving fight over whether about 20,000 mail ballots should be pulled aside before the Nov. 3 midterm election, after the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued an order late Friday. The Justice Department went to the appeals court because

Oct 24, 2026

Intelligence Chief Warns Iran Is Stepping Up Plots

WASHINGTON — Iran has sharply ramped up its effort to go after American personnel outside the United States, and some of its plans to kill U.S. citizens have moved into late stages in the Middle East and in other countries, Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton warned Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a memo

Oct 24, 2026

Justice Department Sues Over Alaska Senate Certification

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The U.S. Justice Department has gone to federal court in Alaska asking a judge to keep the state from certifying its Nov. 3 U.S. Senate result if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan comes up short, arguing that a second candidate with nearly the same name could pull votes away from him. The complaint,

Oct 24, 2026

Federal Workers Rally Outside VA Hospital in Asheville

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Members of the largest union of federal employees joined other Western North Carolina labor groups on Oct. 22 in front of the Charles George VA Medical Center in Asheville to protest how the Trump administration is treating the federal workforce. The rally was part of a week of actions by the American

Oct 23, 2026

Supreme Court Lets New Hampshire Bar Student IDs

WASHINGTON — New Hampshire can turn away student IDs as proof of identity at the polls in next month's midterm election after the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday set aside a lower-court order in the state's voting dispute. In a short unsigned order, the justices put on hold a ruling by U.S. District Judge Joseph

Oct 23, 2026

Outside Money Tops $18M in Arizona Race for Feely, Shah Seat

PHOENIX — Outside groups have poured roughly $18.8 million into the general election fight for Arizona's 1st Congressional District, one of the state's two most competitive House seats, with most of it aimed at helping Republican Jay Feely. Feely, a former Arizona Cardinals kicker and a longtime friend of President Donald Trump, faces Democrat Amish

Oct 23, 2026

Trump Rallies for Hinson in Sioux City

SIOUX CITY, Iowa — President Donald Trump rallied more than a thousand supporters in Sioux City on Thursday night, pressing Iowans to back Republican Ashley Hinson in a U.S. Senate race that has turned surprisingly tight less than two weeks before Election Day. Hinson, a congresswoman since 2021, is running against Democratic state Rep. Josh

Oct 23, 2026

NC Crime Commission Hosts Grant-Writing Workshop Oct. 27

RALEIGH, N.C. — Police departments, local governments and nonprofits hoping to tap North Carolina's largest pot of public safety grants can get a walk-through of the process next week. On Tuesday, Oct. 27, the state's Governor's Crime Commission is running its annual all-day session for grant seekers, a Webex event lasting from 9 in the

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Elected Officials

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US Congress — NC

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Chuck Edwards

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Ted Budd

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Asheville City Council Agendas → North Carolina General Assembly → Find Your US Rep → City of Asheville Official Site → Rep. Chuck Edwards · NC District 11 → Sen. Ted Budd · US → Sen. Thom Tillis · US →

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POLITICS NEWS NEAR ASHEVILLE NC

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Asheville is in Buncombe County, North Carolina. Mayor: Esther E. Manheimer; City Manager: Dakisha "DK" Wesley; Buncombe County Commission Chair: Amanda Edwards.

Latest Asheville Politics News — Page 5

NC gas tax paused through Nov. 30 after Stein signs House Bill 3
Oct 10, 2026
RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina motorists stopped paying the state fuel tax this weekend after Gov. Josh Stein signed House Bill 3 on Friday, pausing the 41-cent-per-gallon levy…
Stein, legislators and Briner file new briefs in NC power fight
Oct 10, 2026
RALEIGH, N.C. — Friday was the deadline for Gov. Josh Stein, Treasurer Brad Briner and GOP legislative leaders to file new briefs in the separation-of-powers cases the state…
Schumer says he will stay leader as some nominees balk
Oct 10, 2026
WASHINGTON — Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says he is running again to lead Senate Democrats, even as several of his own nominees refuse to commit to supporting…
House GOP enters triage as deep-red seats turn competitive
Oct 10, 2026
WASHINGTON — House Republicans are entering triage mode four weeks from Election Day, with a growing number privately fearing their chances of holding the majority are vanishing as…

Asheville NC Politics & Civic News — Page 5

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What do you think: Appeals Court Sets Saturday Deadline?

What do you think: Intelligence Chief Warns Iran Is Stepping Up Plots?

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POLITICS NEWS NEAR ASHEVILLE NC

Latest Asheville Politics News — Page 5

NC gas tax paused through Nov. 30 after Stein signs House Bill 3

Stein, legislators and Briner file new briefs in NC power fight

Schumer says he will stay leader as some nominees balk

House GOP enters triage as deep-red seats turn competitive