N.C. Sen. Tom Apodaca, a Republican, who recently won reelection to the N.C. General Assembly representing Senate District 48, plans to focus on jobs and education when he returns to Raleigh in January. On...

Though it was well past midnight, Joan Smith sat at her kitchen table, staring at the pile of bills that needed to be paid. Her $2,700 monthly paycheck — before taxes and Social Security deductions —...