Politics

March 7, 2014 - In the wake of a massive coal ash spill, Duke Energy's influence with North Carolina lawmakers has drawn heightened scrutiny. But as the utility giant faces new legal challenges, what influence does it have in state courts?

March 6, 2014 - With a new poll finding North Carolina voters overwhelmingly want state officials to force Duke Energy to clean up its coal ash pits, a protest outside the governor's mansion that involved the Moral Monday movement leader turned up the heat on the McCrory administration, which is under federal investigation following the Feb. 2 spill into the Dan River.

March 5, 2014 - In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states and local governments with a history of discrimination no longer needed to submit new voting laws for federal approval. Now, voting rights advocates are trying to put them back under oversight using the courts and Congress.

February 28, 2014 - Known as "America's most revolutionary mayor," Jackson, Miss. Mayor Chokwe Lumumba died this week at age 66. Lumumba earned a reputation for being both practical and visionary, an effective politician who never abandoned his principles of "revolutionary transformation."

February 21, 2014 - This week nearly 150 activists and scholars gathered at Duke University to discuss what approaches and strategies will be needed if unions are to succeed in the South.

February 20, 2014 - Duke Energy has long fought strict federal regulations on coal ash, which is in the spotlight again following a spill from one of the company's North Carolina plants. Duke got help from the American Legislative Exchange Council, the controversial corporate-interest advocacy group that has counted the utility among its members.

February 18, 2014 - Political scientists at Dartmouth College and the University of Florida studied North Carolina's recent election changes and found they will disproportionately hurt the state's African-American voters.