NC General Assembly by the numbers: The party divide as Rep. Cotham switches parties

N.C. Rep. Tricia Cotham announced Wednesday that she will join the House Republican caucus after years as a Democrat, firming up Republicans’ control.

The move, announced at GOP Headquarters, is expected to ensure overrides of any veto from Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper.

Until Wednesday, 71 of the House’s 120 seats were occupied by Republicans with 49 by Democrats. That left Republicans one vote short of the 72 votes, or three-fifths of the chamber, needed for a supermajority.

The party switch now gives Republicans 72 seats and Democrats 48 seats.

If someone is not present for a vote, the math changes. House members may be absent for a variety of reasons, including health, family and work. Under new rules, the House doesn’t have to give notice on its calendar of potential veto override votes.

Republicans in the Senate already have a supermajority and control 30 out of 50 seats. That’s three-fifths of the votes — enough to override a veto from Cooper.

Cooper has two years left in his term, and GOP leaders have said they will revisit bills he has vetoed in the past.

On March 29, the General Assembly successfully bypassed the governor’s veto for the first time since 2018. Senate Bill 41 includes a repeal of the state’s handgun permit requirement.

Cotham was one of three Democrats who were absent during the 71-46 vote due to a medical appointment, The Charlotte Observer reported. She said she was opposed to the bill.

Cotham told The Charlotte Observer that Republicans and Democrats knew she wouldn’t be present at the legislature on the 29th and that her presence alone wouldn’t have stopped the veto override.

In order to successfully override Cooper’s veto, Republicans needed at least one Democrat to vote with them, or two Democrats to not be present.

Avi Bajpai, Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan and Josh Bergeron contributed to this report.

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