Press release: NC By the People launches statewide campaign focused against constitutional amendments
Coalition of 20 organizations from across North Carolina launches NCVoteAgainst.org ahead of November election
RALEIGH — NC By the People, a ballot referenda committee made up of 20 organizations from across North Carolina, today announced the launch of the NC Vote Against campaign and NCVoteAgainst.org, a new website focused on three proposed constitutional amendments that will appear on North Carolina ballots this November.
The growing coalition includes community organizations, worker and educator organizations, voting rights groups, racial justice organizations, environmental groups, and economic and social justice advocates representing communities across North Carolina. Together, member organizations are working to inform North Carolinians about what the amendments would do and are campaigning against all three proposals.
“Organizations across North Carolina are coming together because these amendments would have lasting consequences for our communities. Our state Constitution should protect our rights, including our ability to build a thriving state and our freedom to make our voices heard at the ballot box — not lock in policies that make it harder to ask wealthy people and profitable corporations to pay what they owe while leaving fewer resources for schools, health care, emergency services, and other things our communities need,” said Alexandra Sirota, Executive Director of the NC Budget & Tax Center. “North Carolinians deserve to understand what these amendments would do, who stands to benefit, and what they could mean for our communities before they cast their votes.”
Christina Cole, President of the North Carolina Association of Educators, added: "Raleigh politicians want to write tax breaks for billionaires and corporations into our constitution, and make our kids pay for it. These amendments would drain billions from our schools and gut the county budgets that keep counselors, bus drivers, and classrooms running. Our public schools sit 50th in the nation in funding effort. We cannot afford these dangerous amendments."
The three proposed amendments address the state income tax cap, limits on local property tax revenue growth, and voter photo identification requirements. The two tax amendments would place long-term limits on state and local revenue in the Constitution, making it harder for communities to fund schools, emergency services, health care, infrastructure, libraries, and other public services people rely on. These limits could put greater pressure on local governments and families as costs rise, while making it harder to ask wealthy people and profitable corporations to contribute what they owe. The voter ID amendment would create additional barriers to voting and make those requirements more difficult to change in the future.
The coalition says the proposals deserve particular attention because they would change the state Constitution. Unlike ordinary legislation, constitutional provisions cannot simply be changed through the regular legislative process.
“A constitution belongs to the people, and the people deserve to know what's being written into it. These three amendments would shape our schools, our services, and our access to the ballot for years to come. Since June, we’ve been working from our cities to our rural counties to make sure every North Carolinian understands what they're being asked to lock into our Constitution. Whether they vote by mail, during early voting, or on Election Day, we want them informed, ready, and voting no on all three,” said Marcus Bass, Executive Director, North Carolina Black Alliance.
The newly launched NCVoteAgainst.org provides information about each proposed amendment, answers frequently asked questions, and offers ways for North Carolinians to learn more and get involved with the campaign. The site also provides downloadable materials, voter resources, and other features to help organizations and individuals share information about the amendments ahead of Election Day.
Early voting begins Oct. 15 and runs through Oct. 31, with Election Day on Nov. 3, 2026.
The coalition currently includes 20 organizations (listed below) with additional organizations continuing to join the effort.
Organizations interested in joining NC By the People can contact info@ncvoteagainst.org.
More information about the campaign and the proposed amendments is available at NCVoteAgainst.org.
More quotes from members of the NC By the People committee
Adrienne Kelly, Executive Director at Democracy North Carolina: "Elections are safest when ALL voters have ready and free access to the ballot. Placing the Voter ID in our Constitution does nothing to protect our elections and only harms North Carolinians. Voter ID is already the law in North Carolina, and this amendment creates additional barriers to voters, particularly around absentee voting. This unnecessary amendment would also double down on the deeply troubling voting disparities in our state – this would make it harder for Black, brown and poorer North Carolinians to vote. And we know that Voter ID is part of a long history of race-based voter suppression in North Carolina with a direct negative impact on those in Black and brown communities. This is an active deterrent to voting, it silences the voices of future voters, and it makes it even more difficult to remove or make changes to existing photo ID law.”
Carrie Clark, NC League of Conservation Voters’ Executive Director: “While North Carolinians raise their concerns about skyrocketing energy bills and data centers, lawmakers in Raleigh aren’t just ignoring them, they’re pushing huge tax breaks to wealthy corporations like Duke Energy and data center developers — with working class North Carolinians paying for it. The true beneficiaries of these tax amendments are ultra-wealthy corporations and the politicians who receive campaign funding from these corporations. If the NC General Assembly truly wanted to help everyday North Carolinians, they would’ve passed laws this last summer to stop greedy Duke Energy from continuing to raise rates to build expensive, dirty fossil fuel energy, while padding their profits. Instead, they are putting misleading descriptions on the ballot that will make the rich even richer. All of this while we get data centers, higher energy bills, and less funding for clean air, clean water, and other necessary, local resources.”
Rebekah Whilden, Executive Director at Carolina Forward: “North Carolina can’t afford to gamble with the services and investments that keep our communities strong. The constitutional amendments on the ballot in November would put our state’s fiscal future at risk while prioritizing tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy, and that’s why Carolina Forward is urging voters to vote AGAINST.”
Graig Meyer, Executive Director, North Carolina Justice Center: “People want taxes to be both low and fair. These amendments give us neither. While they deceptively promise low taxes, most people will just see the amount that they spend at the grocery store and gas pump go up through the sales tax. Both state and local governments will have to increase fees on everything from car registrations to school costs. Meanwhile, those who can most afford higher taxes will never pay what they truly owe, while working families and people with low or fixed incomes are hit hardest by every new fee and nickel-and-dime charge.”
Tara Romano, Executive Director, Pro-Choice North Carolina: “Voting rights are reproductive rights, and ensuring adequate local and state public funding for health care, child care, public schools, affordable housing, and social safety nets is a reproductive justice imperative. Enshrining inequitable tax policies and impediments to voting in the state constitution leads to barriers to participating fully in our society, particularly for parents raising young children. North Carolina families deserve the support they need to thrive in our state, not underhanded schemes to transfer even more power to wealthy and out-of-state interests.”
Jenice Ramirez, Co-Executive Director, Education Justice Alliance: “North Carolina families are working to transform our public schools into places where every child has what they need to thrive. These amendments could make that work harder. The tax proposals would limit the state’s and local communities’ ability to raise revenue for schools, while the photo ID proposal would add another barrier to participation in decisions that shape our children’s futures. Families have fought too hard for both fully-funded schools and a voice in our democracy. No matter what happens in November, we will keep organizing alongside parents, students, and educators for the schools our communities deserve.”
Lauren Fox, Sr. Director of Policy and Research, Public School Forum of NC: “A strong system of public schools is foundational to the well-being of our communities and our state overall, and these tax amendments are a direct threat to that well-being. North Carolina currently ranks at the bottom nationally in spending for public schools. We see the impacts in classrooms across the state every day, as many schools struggle to recruit and retain excellent educators, school buildings are in dire need of repair, and teachers are paying thousands of dollars out of pocket for basic classroom supplies. Our children deserve better, and we can make the choice now to do better for them – but the amendments would constrain our ability to meet their needs now and in the future. We stand beside our students, educators, and communities and encourage you to join us in voting against.”
Jenn Frye, Co-Director, Carolina Federation: “Most North Carolinians are working harder than ever to pay for food, homes, and doctor visits. Instead of helping us, certain Raleigh politicians put three constitutional amendments on the ballot that won’t lower bills, but would hand billions in tax cuts to the wealthy and giant corporations like AI data centers and Duke Energy. North Carolinians will pay the price within less freedom and higher costs for groceries, gas, and electricity. In NC, we decide. When we vote against all three amendments and demand that lawmakers make corporations and the wealthy pay what they owe, we can win real relief for all NC families.”
Todd Zimmer, Co-Executive Director, Down Home North Carolina: “If passed, the constitutional amendments on this year's ballot would devastate funding for public schools, healthcare, and vital services North Carolinians depend on. We Are Down Home NC sees these amendments for what they are: deceptive ballot measures hiding yet another giveaway to the ultra wealthy and corporations like Duke Energy. We can't let that happen to rural NC. We are committed to working side by side with our partners in NC By the People to ensure voters understand the harmful impacts of these amendments and the need to vote against all three.”
For more information, or to connect with a spokesperson from the NC By the People committee or any of our member organizations, please email info@ncvoteagainst.org or call (919) 213-0518.
About NC By the People
NC By the People is a ballot referendum committee made up of organizations representing communities, workers, voters, and advocates from across North Carolina. The committee formed to inform voters about and organize opposition to the three proposed constitutional amendments appearing on North Carolina’s November 2026 ballot. NC Vote Against is a project of NC By the People.
Participating Organizations
Action NC
North Carolina Association of Educators (NCAE)
North Carolina Black Alliance
NC Budget & Tax Center
Carolina Federation
Carolina Forward
Center for Racial Equity in Education (CREED-NC)
Common Cause NC
Local Progress
NC Conservation Network
NC Counts Coalition
Democracy North Carolina
Down Home North Carolina
Education Justice Alliance
NC For the People
NC Justice Center
NC League of Conservation Voters
Pro-Choice NC
Public School Forum of North Carolina
Southern Environmental Law Center