I’ve lived in North Carolina for essentially my entire life (that is since the age of 2) and I used to be so proud to call myself a North Carolinian. When you stop and think about it, North Carolina is an amazing state. We have the oldest public university (go Tar Heels!), we have both mountains and the beach, and we’re the home of the Krispy-Kreme doughnut. . . need I say more? Unfortunately, I am slowly becoming less proud to call myself a North Carolinian. Our state government has some flaws, flaws so glaringly obvious that an Australian comedian in Iceland called me and my family out on it this past summer.

Recently, party polarization on the local level has led for many to believe that North Carolina is no longer a democracy. An article by Andrew Reynolds, posted in The News and Observer, grabbed the attention of not only North Carolinians but many across the country. Seth Myers even focused in on North Carolina’s government in his segment A Closer Look. There is no denying that North Carolina has been getting added attention on their legislature, but why?

The downward spiral all began when Governor Pat McCrory signed House Bill 2, commonly known as HB2 or “the bathroom bill," into law. The bill came with a lot of backlash from North Carolina’s citizens and from the country as a whole. Many places including the North Carolina University System chose not to follow the bill, specifically in regards to its rules on public bathrooms. Following the resentment of HB2, North Carolinians voted democrat Roy Cooper into office.

While the state rejoiced for Cooper’s victory, McCrory aims to deplete all of Cooper’s power before he even enters office. This so-called “power grab” includes legislation that stops future governors of appointing a majority to the State Board of Elections. The Board was also changed from five to eight people, meaning that the parties will be stuck at a dead split rather than having a deciding voter. Also, McCrory’s successors will now have the ability to appoint 425 state employees as opposed to 1,500. The most shocking terms McCrory has added are that all cabinet appointees must be approved by the republican-run state senate.

Overall the North Carolina State Government is all over the place. This article didn’t even touch on other problems such as severe gerrymandering. Loyalty to the party rather than to democracy has taken over. The state motto of North Carolina is “esse quam videri,” meaning “to be rather than to seem.” I think it’s time North Carolina becomes a democracy rather than seeming like one. I love this state and I know we are better than this.