RALEIGH, N.C. — Gov. Roy Cooper (D) delivered his final State of the State address on Monday evening. Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson (R) gave the Republican response to Gov. Cooper's address.
This is Cooper's last term as governor.
TERM LIMITS
Cooper is prevented from running for another term as governor under the North Carolina State Constitution. Governors and lieutenant governors are elected every four years, with a two-term limits.
So, how many term limits can the governor and lieutenant governor serve?
"No person elected to the office of Governor or Lieutenant Governor shall be eligible for election to more than two consecutive terms of the same office," states Article III, Section 2 of the NC Constitution. Prior to 1972, governors of NC were limited to only one four-year term.
Since Cooper is nearing the end of his second term, he is unable to run for governor for a third time.
So, why is Lt. Gov. Robinson giving the Republican response to the State of the State address? The answer comes down to NC election laws.
SEPARATE ELECTIONS
Gubernatorial election laws vary widely from state to state. Roughly half of all states elect governors and lieutenant governors separately, as opposed to running on a joint ticket.
North Carolina is one of the states where the governor and lieutenant governor are elected simultaneously, but on separate tickets, making it possible for these elected executive leaders to come from different parties.
This is the case in North Carolina, one of three states that currently have a governor and lieutenant governor from different parties. Louisiana and Vermont also fall into this category.
Separate elections for governor and lieutenant governor can present challenges, specifically when they come from separate powers.
According to the Center for Politics, between Louisiana, Vermont and North Carolina, "The most antagonistic relationship of the 3 is in North Carolina, where Cooper is a moderate Democrat but Robinson regularly stakes out positions on the right flank of the GOP, including remarks critical of the LGBT community. He’s expected to run for governor in 2024."
Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson has been vocal about the possibility of running for governor to replace Cooper.
"It's time for me to stand up and serve," Robinson said in a speech over the weekend at the Conservative Political Action Conference.
This is not the first time that Robinson has expressed his desire to run for Governor of North Carolina and giving the Republican response to the State of the State will provide him with the platform and attention that he needs to do it.
Flashpoint is a weekly in-depth look at politics in Charlotte, North Carolina, South Carolina, and beyond with host Ben Thompson. Listen to the podcast weekly.
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