Governor Josh Stein vetoed the bill. He's a Democrat. That's what Democrats do with immigration enforcement legislation. He probably figured that was the end of it.

It wasn't.

North Carolina Republicans overrode Stein's veto on Senate Bill 153, the North Carolina Border Protection Act, officially ending sanctuary policies statewide and ordering full cooperation with ICE across multiple state agencies. The override took nearly a year after the Senate's initial vote — and the way it finally happened tells you everything about where the politics of immigration enforcement are headed, even in purple states.

Here's the math that made it work. Republicans lost their legislative supermajority in the 2024 elections. A veto override requires 60% of members present. Two Democratic legislators — Rep. Shelly Willingham of Edgecombe and Rep. Carla Cunningham, formerly of Mecklenburg and now unaffiliated — were absent during the override vote. That gave Republicans the numbers they needed.

Rep. Reece Pyrtle, a Republican from Rockingham, laid out the reasoning plainly: "We've taken concrete steps to put an end to sanctuary city policies, but we've had public officials that made a name for themselves by openly defying those laws. These are common sense things to do to ensure that we are doing what we can at the state level to address illegal immigration and protect our citizens."

The law does more than just signal cooperation. It mandates that law enforcement undergo ICE-conducted training. It expands the cooperation mandate across multiple state agencies, not just local police departments. And here's the provision that should make every sanctuary city mayor in America nervous: it removes governmental immunity from sanctuary jurisdictions when illegal aliens commit crimes. Meaning if a local government refuses to cooperate with ICE and someone gets hurt, that government can be held liable.

That's not a policy change. That's a legal landmine under every remaining sanctuary holdout in the state.

SB 153 wasn't even the only override that day. Senate Bill 227 prohibits K-12 schools from teaching twelve listed "divisive concepts." Senate Bill 558 applies similar restrictions to public universities. House Bill 171, targeting DEI programs in state and local governments, still needs a Senate override vote. Newsmax's Michael Katz reported the full sweep on June 30.

The Stein administration will frame this as partisan overreach enabled by a procedural technicality — two absent members tipping the scales. And sure, the absences mattered. But the substance of the law polls well even in blue-leaning districts, and every Democrat in that chamber knew the vote was coming. Being absent for it is its own kind of vote.

A year ago, North Carolina's governor could veto immigration enforcement and call it leadership. Today, the override is law, ICE training is mandatory, and sanctuary jurisdictions just lost their legal shield.

Funny how fast "common sense" becomes law when the veto pen runs out of ink.