NOTUS published this week the first in a series of longform pieces about the 2026 elections — written and reported by NOTUS’ newsroom partners across the country.
The first dispatch is from Chase Pellegrini de Paur at INDY and The Assembly in North Carolina. The series is edited by NOTUS Perspectives Editor Richard Just.
The pieces will be part of NOTUS Perspectives, a new platform for smart and ideologically diverse opinion, as well as deeply reported longform storytelling about the most pressing political questions of our time. They will also be co-published by local newsrooms as part of the NOTUS Washington Bureau Initiative.
“This series fills a key gap in American political journalism,” Just said. “There are numerous congressional and state races every cycle that have major implications for both local communities and our larger democracy — but these stories are rarely told for a national audience by local reporters, that is, by the reporters who know the subject best.”
The first piece in this series is emblematic of NOTUS Perspectives’ ambitions: It’s a deep dive into a solidly blue seat in North Carolina where an establishment Democratic incumbent is facing a serious challenge from a progressive candidate who is embracing the comparison to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. The race is a good early test of whether Mamdani’s approach can win across the country.
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Additional pieces will roll out over the next few months.
To subscribe to the free weekly NOTUS Perspectives newsletter, click here.
About NOTUS:
NOTUS is a newsroom like no other: a mix of veteran reporters and editors working with some of the country’s most promising up-and-coming reporters — individuals from different regions, different backgrounds, and different beliefs who have come to Washington as fellows at the Allbritton Journalism Institute.
Together, we cover government and politics with the fresh eyes of newcomers and the expertise of veterans. We call it like we see it, no matter whose narrative it fits or how many clicks it will get.
About NOTUS Perspectives:
NOTUS Perspectives is NOTUS’ platform for analysis, ideas and narratives. It regularly publishes forums on the most pressing political questions of our time, featuring short arguments from an ideologically diverse mix of policymakers, journalists, academics and other experts. NOTUS Perspectives also features essays and narratives on policy and politics, with insights from D.C. and across the country.
To pitch a story idea for NOTUS Perspectives, email Richard Just: RichardJust@notus.com
About the NOTUS Washington Bureau Initiative:
NOTUS partners with local newsrooms around the country to provide their readers with critical accountability reporting from Washington.
The Washington Bureau Initiative gives readers in local communities the reporting they need to understand what their elected representatives are doing in Congress — and how the actions taken by Congress, the White House and federal agencies are impacting their lives.
The journalism produced as part of the initiative is published on NOTUS.com, as well as on the sites of the local news partners.
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