Politics & Government

The former president of the UNC system, Erskine Bowles, says he will not run for governor. Meanwhile, Democratic Representative Heath Shuler and state House Representative Joe Hackney will not seek another term in office.

Republican leaders in the state legislature are considering measures that could end the estate tax for North Carolinians. The Revenue Laws Study Committee met today to discuss taxes in the state. The committee plans to hold a full discussion on repealing the estate tax at its next meeting. Republican Senator Robert Rucho is a co-chair of the committee.

North Carolina's farm economy is one of the biggest industries in the state. That's one of the reasons for a forum today on trends that affect the agriculture economy. State officials say farm safety, exports and drought will be some of the topics. Brian Long is with the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. He says there's another problem that doesn't get as much attention.

Republican Pat McCrory is in his first full day on the campaign trail for Governor.

Jeff Tiberii: On Tuesday night in a Greensboro suburb just blocks from where he grew up McCrory made the symbolic first step of his Gubernatorial bid:

Pat McCrory: Ladies and Gentlemen I am proud to return back home to officially announce that I will run for Governor because we’re going to fix this broken government and we’re going to fix this broken economy here in North Carolina.