Senator Harry Brown's term coming to an end with no regrets

North Carolina Senator Harry Brown has been a member of the North Carolina State Senate since 2004 and became the Senate Majority Leader in 2011. His current term ends on December 31, 2020. As a small business owner who grew up in Jones County but worked in Onslow County, Brown’s initial motivation for running for office was to help other small businesses in his district and in the state.

“I felt like a lot of people didn’t understand how hard it was for people to be in small business. I felt like I can be a voice for small businesses,” said Brown.

At the start of his political career, Brown learned the process to move legislation including how to put it together and moving it through committee.

“Very few bills get passed because it’s a long process and it’s a lot of work,” said Brown. “You just dig in and work hard to get a bill through the whole process.”

The work he’s most proud of includes expanding broadband in rural areas, helping rural counties get more sales tax dollars, the funding for coastal inlet dredging, and his focus on education for trade skills.

“I’ll miss being in the fight. I enjoy being in the fight to try to make a difference, and I’ll miss that,” said Brown.

The public perception of Republicans and Democrats is that the two groups of people are fighting in the aisles, but according to Brown, the parties agree on about 95% of the things that happen in the senate and that its only about 2% of the items that cause the biggest debates. Brown has advice for the incoming senator to represent his district.

“Get out in your district and try to understand it. Talk to as many people as you can to really understand the issues they face,” said Brown.

Brown was a proponent of controversial legislation to ban new wind farms in most of Eastern North Carolina, which was ultimately dropped. He was against the creation of the North Carolina Lottery in 2005 and opposed Medicaid expansion for low-income residents of the state.

He has no regrets, “I’m one of those that if I’m going to do something, I work hard at it. I did that. I never thought a boy who grew up in tobacco fields would wind up being the majority leader of the senate.”

He plans to stay busy with his dealership and insurance agency but stated he will probably get back into something as economic development is important to him but for now, he’s taking a step back and recharging.