North Carolina Senate Republicans pick Lee as next majority leader

FILE - North Carolina state Sen. Michael Lee, a New Hanover County Republican and education committee co-chair, takes questions from lawmakers about a bill seeking to restrict K-4 educators from teaching about LGBTQ topics induring a committee meeting at the Legislative Office Building in Raleigh, N.C., on Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Hannah Schoenbaum, File)

North Carolina Senate Republicans pick Lee as next majority leader

By GARY D. ROBERTSON Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Senate Republicans chose a new majority leader on Tuesday, elevating a veteran lawmaker who has won close swing district races to a top position in the chamber’s GOP caucus.

A news release said the caucus elected Sen. Michael Lee of New Hanover County to the post by acclamation. Lee succeeds outgoing Sen. Paul Newton, who resigned from the Senate last week to become general counsel at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

“It is an honor to have the support and trust of my colleagues,” Lee said in the release.

The majority leader is considered a chief lieutenant to the chamber’s No. 1 leader, GOP Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger. The majority leader presides at caucus meetings in which Republican senators discuss policy issues and votes. Once Newton’s replacement in the Senate is appointed, Republicans will again hold 30 of the 50 seats.

“Michael works day in and day out to do the best for his constituents,” Berger said. “He is someone every senator — Republican or Democrat — can turn to for advice and mentorship.”

Lee, an attorney, was first appointed to the Senate in 2014 to fill a vacancy. He lost his seat in the 2018 election to former Wilmington Mayor Harper Peterson, only to regain it by edging Peterson two years later. Lee began serving as one of the top budget committee chairmen in 2023 and will keep that job while majority leader.

Lee has been a key advocate for laws that expanded the use of taxpayer funds for K-12 students to attend private schools. This year, he shepherded a bill that would prevent public schools from advancing certain diversity, equity and inclusion practices within classroom instruction or teacher training.

Lee has been considered at times a moderating voice in the Republican Party on several issues. During the General Assembly’s debate on new abortion restrictions, Lee early on publicly described his opposition to a ban during the first trimester of pregnancy. The law ultimately enacted in 2023 banned most abortions after 12 weeks.

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