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2021 North Carolina legislative session

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2021 North Carolina legislative session
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General information
Session start:    January 13, 2021

Session end:    December 30, 2021

Leadership
Senate President
TBD

House Speaker
Tim Moore (R)
Majority Leader
Senate: TBD
House: John Bell (R)
Minority Leader
Senate: Dan Blue (D)
House: TBD

Elections
Next Election:    November 08, 2022

Last Election:    November 3, 2020

Previous legislative sessions
2020 • 2019 • 2018
Other 2021 legislative sessions


In 2021, the North Carolina State Legislature was scheduled to convene on January 13 and adjourn on December 30. The regular session was originally scheduled to conclude on October 29, 2021.

The legislators serving in this session took office following the 2020 elections. Republicans won a 28-22 majority in the Senate and a 61-51 majority in the House. The Democratic Party controlled the governorship, making North Carolina one of 12 states with a divided government. At the start of the 2021 session, North Carolina was one of 28 state legislatures where neither party had a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers.

The North Carolina State Legislature is responsible for redistricting following each census. Legislators were expected to address redistricting as part of the 2021 legislative session. As of the 2020 Census, North Carolina was one of 37 states where legislators were responsible for redistricting.

At the beginning of the 2021 legislative session:
  • Republicans held a majority in the North Carolina state House and state Senate.
  • North Carolina was one of 12 divided governments.
  • North Carolina's governor was Democrat Roy Cooper.

    • Leadership in 2021

    North Carolina State Senate

    • Senate president: TBD
    • Majority leader: TBD
    • Minority leader: Dan Blue (D)

    North Carolina House of Representatives

    Partisan control in 2021

    See also: State government trifectas

    North Carolina was one of 12 states with a divided government at the start of 2021 legislative sessions. Thirty-eight states have a state government trifecta, which occurs when one political party holds the governor's office, a majority in the state Senate, and a majority in the state House. For more information about state government trifectas, click here.

    North Carolina was also one of 28 state legislatures where neither party had a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers. Veto overrides occur when a legislature votes to reverse a veto issued by an executive such as a governor or the president. If one party has a majority in a state legislature that is large enough to override a gubernatorial veto without any votes from members of the minority party, it is called a veto-proof majority or, sometimes, a supermajority. To read more about veto-proof supermajorities in state legislatures, click here.

    The following tables show the partisan breakdown of the North Carolina State Legislature in the 2021 legislative session.

    North Carolina State Senate

    Party As of January 2021
         Democratic Party 22
         Republican Party 28
    Total 50

    North Carolina House of Representatives

    Party As of January 2021
         Democratic Party 51
         Republican Party 69
    Total 120

    Regular session

    The following widget shows up to 25 pieces of legislation in the 2021 legislative session that most recently passed both chambers of the legislature, were signed by the governor, or were approved by the legislature in a veto override. If no bills are displayed below, no legislation met these criteria in 2021. This information is provided by BillTrack50.

    Redistricting

    See also: Redistricting in North Carolina after the 2020 census

    North Carolina's 14 United States representatives and 170 state legislators are all elected from political divisions called districts. District lines are redrawn every 10 years following completion of the United States census. Federal law stipulates that districts must have nearly equal populations and must not discriminate on the basis of race or ethnicity.

    Congressional districts
    Mid-decade redistricting in North Carolina ahead of the 2026 elections has concluded.

    North Carolina redrew its congressional map ahead of the 2026 elections. The state Senate approved a new congressional map on October 21, 2025, and the state House followed on October 22, 2025.[1][2] Redistricting bills do not require gubernatorial approval in North Carolina and are not subject to a veto. The North Carolina General Assembly previously adopted new congressional district boundaries on October 25, 2023.[3] The legislation adopting the new maps passed the state Senate by a vote of 28-18 and the State House by a vote of 64-40.[4] Both votes were strictly along party lines with all votes in favor by Republicans and all votes against by Democrats.[5][6]

    Click here for more information about the congressional maps enacted in North Carolina after the 2020 census.

    Legislative districts
    State legislative redistricting in North Carolina after the 2020 census has concluded.

    On October 25, 2023, the North Carolina General Assembly adopted new legislative district boundaries.[7] The legislation adopting the new Senate districts passed the state Senate by a vote of 28-17 and the State House by a vote of 63-40.[8] The legislation adopting the new House districts passed the state Senate by a vote of 27-17 and the State House by a vote of 62-44.[9] All four votes were strictly along party lines with all votes in favor by Republicans and all votes against by Democrats.[10][11][12][13] WUNC's Rusty Jacobs wrote that Catawba College Prof. Michael "Bitzer said Republicans have drawn maps that have a strong chance of preserving their veto-proof super majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. Bitzer noted that constitutional provisions, like requiring legislators to keep counties whole when drawing state legislative districts, make it more difficult for lawmakers to gerrymander these maps more aggressively."[14]

    Click here for more information about the state legislative maps enacted in North Carolina after the 2020 census.

    To learn more about the redistricting process in North Carolina after the 2020 census, click here.

    Standing legislative committees

    See also: Standing committee and List of committees in North Carolina state government


    A standing committee of a state legislature is a committee that exists on a more-or-less permanent basis, from legislative session to session, that considers and refines legislative bills that fall under the committee's subject matter.

    At the beginning of the 2021 legislative session, there were 37 standing committees in North Carolina's state government, including 18 state Senate committees and 19 state House committees.

    Senate committees

    House committees

    Legislatively referred constitutional amendments

    In every state but Delaware, voter approval is required to enact a constitutional amendment. In each state, the legislature has a process for referring constitutional amendments before voters. In 18 states, initiated constitutional amendments can be put on the ballot through a signature petition drive. There are also many other types of statewide measures.

    The methods by which the North Carolina Constitution can be amended:

    See also: Article XIII of the North Carolina Constitution and Laws governing ballot measures in North Carolina

    The North Carolina Constitution provides two mechanisms for amending the state's constitution—a legislative process and a state constitutional convention. North Carolina requires a simple majority vote (50% plus 1) for voters to approve constitutional amendments.

    Legislature

    See also: Legislatively referred constitutional amendment

    A 60% vote is required during one legislative session for the North Carolina General Assembly to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 72 votes in the North Carolina House of Representatives and 30 votes in the North Carolina State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

    Convention

    See also: Convention-referred constitutional amendment

    According to Article XIII of the North Carolina Constitution, a two-thirds (66.67%) vote vote of both chambers of state Legislature is required to place a constitutional convention question on the ballot. A simple majority vote is required for voters to approve the question. Any amendments proposed by a constitutional convention also require voter approval.


    Historical partisan control

    The table below depicts the historical trifecta status of North Carolina.

    North Carolina Party Control: 1992-2025
    Fourteen years of Democratic trifectas  •  Four years of Republican trifectas
    Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

    Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
    Governor R D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D R R R R D D D D D D D D D
    Senate D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
    House D D D R R R R D D D D D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R

    Historical Senate control

    Between 1992 and 2020, partisan control of the North Carolina State Senate shifted from a Democratic to a Republican majority. Democrats went from having a 28-seat advantage following the 1992 elections to being at a 6-seat disadvantage after the 2020 elections. The table below shows the partisan history of the North Carolina State Senate following every general election from 1992 to 2020. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.

    North Carolina State Senate election results: 1992-2020

    Year '92 '94 '96 '98 '00 '02 '04 '06 '08 '10 '12 '14 '16 '18 '20
    Democrats 39 26 30 35 35 28 29 31 30 19 18 16 15 21 22
    Republicans 11 24 20 15 15 22 21 19 20 31 32 34 35 29 28

    From 1992 to 2010, Senate Democrats controlled the North Carolina State Senate. Democrats had their largest majority following the 1992 election when Democrats held a 28-seat advantage. For the majority of years between 1992 and 2010, Democrats had more than the 30 seats required to override gubernatorial vetoes. Democrats controlled the governor's office for all of that time with the exception of 1992.

    Republicans took control of the state Senate in the 2010 elections. Republicans picked up 11 seats in that election to claim a 31-19 majority. Republicans increased their Senate majority in the 2012, 2014, and 2016 elections. Republicans held a veto-proof supermajority from 2011 through 2018, losing it in the 2018 election.

    The Republican gains from 2010 to 2016 were in line with a national trend toward Republican state legislatures during the presidency of Barack Obama (D). From 2009 to 2017, Democrats experienced losses in state legislative elections, totaling 968 seats altogether.

    In June 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed a federal district court decision finding that 28 state legislative districts had been subject to an illegal racial gerrymander. The maps were created in 2011 by the Republican-controlled state legislature. The district court then ordered state lawmakers to draft remedial maps for use in the 2018 election cycle. The legislature adopted new state House and Senate district maps on August 30, 2017.[15]

    The Republican majority decreased to 29-21 following the 2018 elections and 28-22 following 2020's elections.

    Historical House control

    Between 1992 and 2008, partisan control of the North Carolina House of Representatives changed four times. Since the 2010 elections, Republicans have controlled the chamber. The table below shows the partisan history of the North Carolina House of Representatives following every general election from 1992 to 2020. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.

    North Carolina House of Representatives election results: 1992-2020

    Year '92 '94 '96 '98 '00 '02 '04 '06 '08 '10 '12 '14 '16 '18 '20
    Democrats 78 52 59 66 62 59 63 68 68 52 43 46 46 55 51
    Republicans 42 68 61 54 58 61 57 52 52 67 77 74 74 65 69
    Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0

    From 1994 to 2002, the Democratic and Republican parties both claimed relatively small majorities, the largest being from 1994 to 1996 when Republicans had a 16-member majority. The Democratic majority spiked between the 2004 and 2006 elections when the party increased their majority by nine seats.

    Democrats held the state House from 2004 until the 2010 election when Republicans gained 15 seats and took control of the chamber. Republicans increased their majority from 67-52 to 77-43 in the 2012 election, gaining a supermajority. Republicans lost three seats in the 2014 election but maintained their supermajority. The Republican gains from 2010 to 2016 were in line with a national trend toward Republican state legislatures during the presidency of Barack Obama (D). From 2009 to 2017, Democrats experienced losses in state legislative elections, totaling 968 seats altogether.

    In June 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed a federal district court decision finding that 28 state legislative districts had been subject to an illegal racial gerrymander. The district court then ordered state lawmakers to draft remedial maps for use in the 2018 election cycle. The legislature adopted new state House and Senate district maps on August 30, 2017.[16]

    After the 2018 elections, the Republican majority decreased to 65-55. After the 2020 elections, their majority increased to 69-51.

    See also

    Elections North Carolina State Government State Legislatures State Politics
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    External links

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named senatepass
    2. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named housepass
    3. ↑ The New York Times, "North Carolina Republicans Approve House Map That Flips at Least Three Seats," October 26, 2023
    4. ↑ North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Bill 757 / SL 2023-145," accessed October 26, 2023
    5. ↑ North Caroliina General Assembly, "House Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #613," accessed October 26, 2023
    6. ↑ North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #492," accessed October 26, 2023
    7. ↑ The Carolina Journal, "New state House, Senate, and congressional maps finalized," October 25, 2023
    8. ↑ North Carolina General Assembly, "Senate Bill 758 / SL 2023-146," accessed October 26, 2023
    9. ↑ North Carolina General Assembly, "House Bill 898 / SL 2023-149," accessed October 26, 2023
    10. ↑ North Carolina General Assembly, "House Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #614," accessed October 26, 2023
    11. ↑ North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #499," accessed October 26, 2023
    12. ↑ North Caroliina General Assembly, "Senate Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #504," accessed October 26, 2023
    13. ↑ North Caroliina General Assembly, "House Roll Call Vote Transcript for Roll Call #604," accessed October 26, 2023
    14. ↑ WUNC, "New district maps show signs of GOP partisan gerrymandering," October 24, 2023
    15. ↑ The News and Observer, "See the proposed NC Senate map," August 20, 2017
    16. ↑ The News and Observer, "See the proposed NC Senate map," August 20, 2017
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