For North Carolina’s electric cooperatives, advocacy is an important part of serving their members and communities. Whether working locally or meeting with lawmakers at the state capital, co-op leaders are committed to ensuring rural voices are part of conversations shaping North Carolina’s energy future and the communities they serve.

Each year, leaders from North Carolina’s electric cooperatives gather in Raleigh to meet with their local legislators and discuss the policy priorities important to the 2.8 million North Carolinians served by the state’s 26 electric cooperatives. These conversations help lawmakers better understand the needs and opportunities facing cooperative communities across the state.

“For cooperatives, sitting down face-to-face with our legislators is vital,” said Jordan Hildreth, CEO of Pee Dee Electric. “It allows us to share the real-world effects that policy has on the daily lives of our members, advocate for member-focused solutions and ensure that decisions reflect the needs of the members we serve.”

More than 140 representatives from electric cooperatives across the state met with members of the North Carolina General Assembly during the event. As North Carolina’s energy needs continue to grow, electric cooperatives are focused on solutions that ensure long-term reliability and affordability for members.

“These conversations matter because the topics being discussed — from energy reliability and affordability to infrastructure and future power supply — directly affect our members’ quality of life,” said Winston Howell, CEO of Edgecombe-Martin County Electric Membership Corporation (EMC). “It’s important that rural communities have a strong voice at the table, and we are proud to represent and advocate for the best interests of our members.”

For electric cooperatives, these policy discussions are deeply connected to the communities they serve and call home. The issues being discussed at the legislature directly impact rural communities across North Carolina. When co-op leaders advocate for reliable energy policy and infrastructure investment, they advocate not only for their members, but for a brighter future of their own communities.

“Advocating for our members is one of the most important responsibilities we have as an electric cooperative,” said Howell. “Events like Rally in Raleigh give us the opportunity to meet directly with elected officials and share how legislative and energy policy decisions impact the families, businesses and rural communities we serve every day.