Morning News Briefs: Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Demand For More Early Voting In NC At Appeals Court

Some North Carolina voters have asked a federal appeals court to step in now and force expanded early in-person voting in five counties, alleging their non-compliance with an earlier ruling that threw out a state law scaling early voting back.

The voters filed an emergency motion Monday at the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, requesting that it order more voting hours and dates, including Sundays, in some counties. Early voting begins Thursday.

The voters' lawyers say U.S. District Judge Thomas Schroeder got it wrong last week when he denied their request. They argue the counties aren't obeying the 4th Circuit decision last July that found a 2013 law was approved with discriminatory intent against black voters.

Pence Begins 3 Days Of NC Rallies By VP Candidates

Campaign events by Mike Pence in eastern North Carolina begin three days of visits by vice presidential candidates leading to the start of early in-person voting in the battleground state.

Pence will participate in two rallies Tuesday — one in Wilmington in the afternoon and another in Fayetteville in the evening. The Wilmington rally for the Republican nominee is set for a conference center along the Cape Fear River, with the Fayetteville event at a veteran-owned defense contracting business.

Democratic nominee Tim Kaine will campaign with the state Democratic Party both on Wednesday and on Thursday, when early voting begins. Wednesday's early-vote event is in Asheville, with Thursday rallies slated for Charlotte and Durham.

Candidates For North Carolina Governor To Debate In Raleigh

Republican Governor Pat McCrory and his Democratic challenger get one more chance to try to sway voters in one of the nation's most competitive gubernatorial races.

Gov. Pat McCrory, Attorney General Roy Cooper and Libertarian candidate Lon Cecil are expected to participate in Tuesday evening's debate in Raleigh just two days before early in-person voting begins.

About $20 million has been spent on broadcast TV ads by McCrory and Cooper and their political allies. They offered sharp criticisms of each other at a televised debate last week.

McCrory Revises North Carolina Death Toll Down

Gov. Pat McCrory has revised the death toll from Hurricane Matthew down slightly.

McCrory told reporters in New Bern on Monday that one of the 26 deaths previously attributed to Matthew has been determined not to have been caused by the storm.

The governor did not say which death was not storm-related. Almost all the deaths blamed on the storm occurred in vehicles.

McCrory also said Interstate 95 has reopened. Several stretches of the road had been closed since Matthew hit the state earlier this month.

The governor also said that the major rivers that have caused flooding problems in eastern North Carolina have peaked, though some flooding is still occurring.

Renovations Funding Approved For Rolling Hills Complex

The future of the troubled Rolling Hills Apartment complex in Winston-Salem was debated Monday night. City Council members voted to approve more than $7 million in bonds to help a new company finance renovations.

Rolling Hills is home to many low-income families. The current owner, New Jersey-based Aspen Companies, has been criticized in recent months for a litany of issues: everything from mold, to sewage backup, to infestations.

City officials are now working with a new company that would purchase and renovate the building. That business is planning to invest around $40 thousand in each unit, if it receives the housing revenue bonds it's requesting for the project.

Garrity says renovations are expected to start early next year.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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