Monday, October 5, 2026

Good Morning! On this day in 1751, future U.S. Supreme Court Justice James Iredell was born. He emigrated from England to Edenton as a teenager and later became one of the first justices appointed by President George Washington.

The NC Chamber announced the 2027 “Coolest Thing Made in NC” winners. Get the details in Top Stories, then reply to our Poll to weigh in on which one you‘d buy.

Remember the traditions you used to keep and somehow just stopped? Maybe not since you were a kid. A lot of the ones we grew up with are quietly slipping away, and the numbers on how far each has fallen are steeper than you'd expect. Which Sunday tradition did families once build the whole week around? And why are so few grooms asking their bride’s father for permission anymore? In the latest episode of Flyover Focus, we count down 10 American traditions that are fading, ending with the one you could still bring back before the month is out. Tune in here!

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NC Republicans Call Special Fuel Session

North Carolina’s top Republican lawmakers say they'll recall the General Assembly for a special session aimed at easing high fuel prices.

House Speaker Destin Hall, R-Caldwell County, and Senate Leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham County, announced the plan Saturday, saying rising costs are squeezing families and farmers. Republicans hold large majorities in both chambers.

Lawmakers could suspend part or all of the state’s 41-cent-a-gallon fuel tax, which funds road work, though they haven’t said what the relief will be. Drivers now pay about $4.03 a gallon, below the national average of $4.37.

Democrats cast the move as an election-year distraction. The Senate’s top Democrat, Sydney Batch, called it “a day late and a dollar short,” while Democrat Gov. Josh Stein has directed the Department of Revenue to suspend penalties for farmers running red-dye diesel on public roads.

Group Flags 1.2K Registration Duplicates

A Virginia-based election-integrity law firm says it found more than 1,200 duplicate voter registrations on North Carolina’s rolls across 10 of the state’s largest counties.

The Public Interest Legal Foundation says Guilford and Cumberland counties account for more than half of the duplicates, which it attributes to the same voters being registered twice under name variations or with missing ID numbers.

Research director Logan Churchwell credited the State Board of Elections with real progress, pointing to its Registration Repair Project to collect missing identification from roughly 103,000 voters whose records lack it. As of Oct. 1, the board had resolved 41,200 of those records, or 40%.

Churchwell said eliminating duplicates would not cost anyone an eligible vote: "Not a single person would lose their voter registration. They would just lose their second one."

NC Names Its ‘Coolest Thing’ Winners

Commercial chillers, a Honda all-terrain vehicle, and a packaged hot cocoa mix won the three categories of the NC Chamber’s 2026 “Coolest Thing Made in NC” contest.

Carrier’s Charlotte-built chillers took the large-business category, while Honda’s FourTrax Foreman 4x4, made in Haw River, won the medium-business title. Old School Brand Hot Cocoa Mix, produced in Albemarle, topped the small-business category.

The field started with 88 products and more than 8,200 first-round votes before narrowing to 15 finalists over two rounds.

The chamber launched the contest in 2020 to spotlight state manufacturing, which the National Association of Manufacturers says accounts for about 15% of North Carolina’s economy and employs more than 453,000 people.

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➤ Reidsville: An SBI agent was shot in the leg Saturday while searching for 38-year-old Marvin Dean White, who authorities say fired at two Rockingham County deputies on Walker Street. White was arrested and is expected to face multiple charges. (More)

➤ Rockingham County and Commissioner Kevin Berger have asked a federal judge to dismiss Sheriff Sam Page’s lawsuit, which alleges retaliation for opposing casino legislation and for defeating Berger’s father in the March GOP primary. The motion argues the complaint states no valid legal claim. (More)

➤ Charlotte: New video shows a man pulling his injured girlfriend inside as a pack of seven dogs attacked her in their northwest Charlotte yard in August. The dogs had tumbled from a U-Haul. The woman suffered more than 100 bites, and three neighbors were also bitten. (More)

➤ Wilmington: The city’s Planning Commission votes Oct. 7 on a rezoning request for Darden-Perry Academy, a proposed charter school for deaf, hard-of-hearing, and hearing students seeking to convert a former college site. The Charter Schools Review Board earlier denied an accelerated opening. (More)

➤ Pea Island: N.C. 12 reopened to two-lane traffic Saturday, ahead of schedule, after a Sept. 24 nor'easter destroyed 1,000 feet of the highway and temporarily cut off Hatteras Island. NCDOT warns of soft shoulders and periodic lane closures this week. (More)

➤ Cary: First responders freed a fawn that had slipped into a storm drain, pulling the young deer to safety, officials said last week. (See Photos)

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➤ The Carolina Panthers came up with a defensive stand at the end of last night's game against the Detroit Lions on Sunday Night Football to secure a 32-26 win. Second-year receiver Tetairoa McMillan had a career night with 192 receiving yards and two touchdowns. (More)

➤ Carolina Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho delivered the team its first win of the season by drilling a one-timer past Philadelphia Flyers goalie Joseph Woll in overtime to earn a 3-2 win. (See Goal)

➤ Charlotte Motor Speedway will host a free celebration of life for Kyle Busch on Friday, following the Craftsman Truck Series Chase race, with his cars on display. The ceremony airs at 8 p.m. on FS1. Busch died in May of pneumonia that progressed to sepsis. (More)

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➤ Ten American traditions are quietly disappearing, and you've probably let a few of them go without ever noticing. (Tune in here)

In the latest episode of Flyover Focus, we run through 10 American traditions on their way out and just how far gone they are. From the midnight movie premieres people used to line up for to the paper that showed up on your porch every morning. And you can still bring back the one in our No. 1 spot.

In case you missed it, last week on Flyover Focus, we broke down the 10 things to buy before you retire, so tune in here.

➤ The Fresh Market, headquartered in Greensboro, was named America's best grocery store in the 2026 USA Today 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards as customers praised its meal kits, fresh produce, and variety of offerings. (More)

➤ The Rise Companies in Raleigh launched a subsidiary, Rise Power Systems, to build power-distribution equipment for data centers and industrial facilities. (See Details)

➤ Relay, the Raleigh maker of smart, app-connected walkie-talkies, raised $36 million and plans to hire up to 100 workers while expanding globally. (More)

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➤ Peak fall colors in Western North Carolina could remain weeks away due to elevation variations. Trackers estimate that Asheville’s peak colors may not arrive until Nov. 14-20. (More)

➤ Carolina Waterfowl Rescue is asking for help after taking in hundreds of neglected animals from a half-acre Iredell County property where more than 800 were found without food or water, some near death. (More)

➤ Three delivery robots are hauling supplies through Duke University Hospital in Durham, taking routine fetch-and-carry trips off the plates of nurses, pharmacists, and supply-chain staff so they can spend more time with patients. (See Photos)

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The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes.

➤ Canada's prime minister admitted his government has war-gamed an American invasion, and the military's own model says how long the country would last. (Hear Plan)

➤ Some college freshmen are packing up and heading home just weeks into their first semester, and they say they still want the degree. (Hear Why)

➤ An Iowa substitute teacher offered her students extra credit for donating to her personal GoFundMe. (Listen Now)