WUNCPolitics Podcast: A Conversation With Jonathan Kappler
The candidate filing period has concluded in North Carolina and there are hundreds of competitors for congressional, legislative and judicial races.
The WUNC Politics Podcast is a free-flowing discussion of what we're hearing in the back hallways of the General Assembly and on the campaign trail across North Carolina.
Sign up for our free, weekly WUNC Politics Newsletter here.

The candidate filing period has concluded in North Carolina and there are hundreds of competitors for congressional, legislative and judicial races.
With candidates filing to run for state legislative seats, another lawsuit was filed this week, challenging a few of the political boundaries.
There was another mass shooting in the United States this week. That means another round of emotional reactions, social media sparring and carefully delivered messages by elected officials. If recent shootings serve as any example, it's also likely that no legislative action will follow.
It was a hectic week in downtown Raleigh, where lawmakers sparred with Governor Roy Cooper, debated the components of a multifaceted bill, and closed in on the 2018 election, which begins Monday with candidate filings.
Elected officials from both parties and at all levels of government are working on curbing the opioid crisis.
Andrew Dunn is a Charlotte-based journalist who recently started a website focused on North Carolina politics.
Thanks to winter weather, it was a slow work week for many in North Carolina. However, the political world trudged along with more redistricting and judicial developments.
Fans of the Carolina Panthers will watch their team in the Wildcard round of the NFL playoffs this Sunday in New Orleans. Soon those fans will wait to see what happens with the franchise. Jerry Richardson, the only owner the Panthers have ever known, will sell the team this off-season. The 81-year-old agreed to sell the team last month, after allegations of workplace harassment and misconduct were detailed in a report by Sports Illustrated.
On the latest episode of the WUNCPolitics Podcast, Gary Robertson sits down to discuss a tumultuous year in North Carolina politics.
This week on the WUNCPolitics Podcast, a conversation with Gerry Cohen, who first ventured into the North Carolina General Assembly more than 45 years ago while working on his graduate thesis.
This week on the WUNCPolitics Podcast, a conversation about the future of Obamacare. Members of Congress could soon make fundamental change to The Affordable Care Act as part of a major tax overhaul.
North Carolina's largest managed care health organization came under further fire this week when it was taken over by a state agency.
Loretta Boniti is a senior political reporter with Spectrum News.
Democrats received a boost this week, as a wave of candidates celebrated victory in the first round of elections during the Trump Presidency.
Democrat David Price has seen plenty during his 30 years in the U.S. House, from the impeachment of President Bill Clinton to the chaos of a Trump Administration.
Jonathan Kappler got hooked on North Carolina politics during high school when he served in the House as a page. Today he's the Executive Director of the NC Free Enterprise Foundation.
As lawmakers reached across the aisle in an effort to move forward on changes to the Affordable Care Act, Washington erupted in another controversy this week.
On this week's episode of the WUNCPolitics Podcast, a conversation with former WUNC reporter and producer Jorge Valencia. Jorge now reports from Mexico City for KJZZ, the public radio station in Phoenix.WUNC Capitol Bureau Chief Jeff Tiberii talks with his former reporting sidekick about the recent earthquake in Mexico, staying safe as a reporter, and Jorge's affinity for languages.
This week on the WUNCPolitics Podcast, a conversation with WUNC Political Reporter Rusty Jacobs.
This week on the WUNCPolitics Podcast, a conversation with Washington Times National Security Reporter Dan Boylan.
In North Carolina, women make up more than 51 percent of the population, yet they hold less than a quarter of the seats at the state legislature.
In recent weeks two major hurricanes have struck the United States, President Trump has continued to criticize journalists, and on Friday morning London suffered another attack when a homemade bomb went off on a commuter train. The news cycle has been uncharacteristically busy for the end of summer.
This week on the WUNCPolitics Podcast, a conversation with David Ford, reporter and host at WFDD.
This week on the WUNC Politics Podcast, a conversation with State Treasurer Dale Folwell.
This week on the WUNC Politics Podcast, a conversation about unrest in Charlottesville, Va., the toppling of a Confederate statue in Durham and President Donald Trump's response to recent events.
This week on the WUNCPolitics Podcast, a conversation with Jeremy Loeb, Morning Edition Host and reporter at Blue Ridge Public Radio.
This week on the WUNCPolitics Podcast, a conversation about the process, history, and political gamesmanship of redistricting.
This week on the WUNCPolitics Podcast, a transgender tweetstorm, softening solar regulations and tales from overseas.