One of North Carolina’s worst legislators resigned this week. Unfortunately, it’s because she wants a promotion. 

Rep. Sarah Stevens announced that she’s stepping down from the state legislature so that she can focus on her campaign to join the North Carolina Supreme Court. 

It’s interesting timing. The NC General Assembly is in session right now, meaning it’s the time of year when legislators need to get the bulk of their work done. And there’s a lot of work still left to be done– like passing a state budget, which she and her Republican colleagues are now nearly a year late on. Rather than finishing the job, she’s decided to abandon her constituents and responsibilities to go chase a promotion to the state’s highest court. 

Here’s a look back at Rep. Stevens’ time in the North Carolina General Assembly– it’s the kind of resume that you really don’t want to see from someone aspiring to sit on the NC Supreme Court. 

Failing Children

This year it was revealed that Stevens sought the support of Harvey West, a politically-connected fundraiser who molested multiple young girls and was placed on the sex offender registry. His record as a predator was known for years, but Stevens still went to his home to raise thousands for her campaign. By taking money from West, Stevens was essentially granting access to a man arrested for preying on children. This isn’t someone who takes public safety seriously, and this isn’t the type of leader you want on the state’s highest court. 

Stevens and her Republican colleagues have also failed to pass a budget to fund our public schools. North Carolina was the only state to fail to pass a budget last year, leaving educators without raises, and schools without critical resources needed to teach our children. Stevens is also a big supporter of private school vouchers, which have funnelled taxpayer dollars to the state’s wealthiest families at the expense of public school students. 

Taken together, you see a legislator who cares less about the safety of children and more about lining her pockets, a leader who is less focused on problem-solving and more focused on politics.  

Attacking Healthcare Access 

Stevens has long opposed affordable healthcare programs, even saying that she wants to eliminate Medicaid. Stevens voted to prevent half a million working North Carolinians from getting healthcare, to strip health insurance from retirees, and to allow insurance companies to deny coverage for pre-existing conditions. 

It’s not just affordable healthcare that Stevens restricted. She also voted in favor of SB 20, a bill that severely restricted abortion access in North Carolina. To add insult to injury, Stevens also led the Republican messaging campaign that celebrated the ban. 

A legislator who celebrates government bans, who takes pride in stripping away freedoms and lifelines from everyday people, is not a leader who should sit atop the justice system.  

Tilting the Scales for Politicians and Corporations

Over the past few years, whenever the needs or rights of everyday people are pitted against the greed of politicians and massive corporations, Stevens has sided with the powerful each time. 

Stevens has repeatedly voted in favor of gerrymandered maps, maps that were meant to silent Black voters and consolidate power for her Republican colleagues. 

In 2023, Stevens introduced legislation raising the mandatory retirement age for judges from 72 years old to 76 years old. That allowed her Republican colleagues, namely Supreme Court Chief Justice Paul Newby and Court of Appeals Judge John Tyson, to remain in power. That same legislation could end up benefitting Stevens herself if she’s elected to the Supreme Court.

And when she had the opportunity to keep North Carolinians’ utility rates from rising, she threw us under the bus again, repeatedly voting to allow Duke Energy to keep implementing electricity rate hikes. 

You can often judge people by how they treat the most vulnerable, the most in need of help and protection– and time and time again, Stevens has chosen the side of predators and politicians, corporations and donors. 

So long Rep. Stevens. Your resignation might have been your best moment in office.