RALEIGH — Photos sent to North State Journal show Republican Senate District 26 candidate Sam Page shaking hands and meeting with attendees of the “Kids over Corporations” protest taking place in Raleigh on May 1.
The “Kids over Corporations” protest was orchestrated by the North Carolina Association of Educators (NCAE) in conjunction with national labor union protests scheduled for May 1, also known as “May Day.” National “May Day Strong” organizers listed political demands like the anti-Trump “No Kings” protests, such as “No ICE. No War.,” “Tax the rich,” and “Hands off our vote.”
The NCAE is an affiliate of the National Education Association, the country’s largest teacher union.
Other outlets like the News & Observer captured a photo of Page walking along with NCAE President-elect Christina Cole. A post on X by News & Observer education reporter Keung Hui said, “Page told educators, including NCAE president-elect Christina Cole, that teacher pay needs to be raised to highest in the Southeast.
Hui also posted a quote from Page about the protest, “This is America. People can have rallies on all the issues. I think it’s important to let people know how important it is to look after our educators, to pay our educators.”
No other Republicans legislative members were spotted at the protest. North State Journal is awaiting a response from the Page campaign about his attendance.
Around 22 districts across the state had to cancel classes for students on May 1 due to too many teachers making requests for personal leave. District closures meant that around 700,000 of the state’s roughly 1.5 million K-12 students were not in class today.
One reporter from outlet WFMY said during live stream coverage of the event that the crowd was estimated at around 8,000. That number is well below the 2019 NCAE-led teacher protest which drew around 20,000 to Raleigh. Live overhead footage taken during the mid-point of theprotest does show a large crowd but an firm number is hard to determine.
WFMY’s live stream also showed reporters talking with protesters who came in costume, such a woman dressed like Gandalf from J.R.R. Lord of the Rings, who was brandishing a sign about giving “$18 billion” in tax breaks to corporations. Another protester came in a banana costume and when asked about it, she told an WFMY reporter the teacher pay scale in North Carolina is “bananas.”
Page is the sheriff of Rockingham County who defeated Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Eden) in this year’s March primary. He faces Democrat Steve Luking in November’s election for the seat, which is rated as +9 Republican by the Civitas Partisan Index.
Berger conceded the race on March 24, and, in a brief statement said, While this was a close race, the voters have spoken, and I congratulate Sheriff Page on his victory.”
During a floor press gaggle on April 21, Berger was asked what message voters sent him in the primary, and he replied, “I think that Democrats like to vote in some Republican primaries. I think that’s the message.”
In a North State Journal interview with Page after Berger’s concession, he said he “ran for the right reasons,” and looked forward to winning in November. Page also said raising teacher pay was one of his top issues.
