Gov. Bev Perdue shocked some political observers Thursday by announcing that she will not seek re-election in a swing state crucial to Democrats’ political fortunes. Perdue’s announcement came just two weeks before the filing period begins and could lead to a scramble for Democratic candidates to quickly assemble a campaign organization and raise funds. Republican Pat McCrory, the former Charlotte mayor who narrowly lost to Perdue in 2008, will officially kick off his gubernatorial campaign Tuesday.

After almost 40 years of living with a neighbor that has riddled their streets with trash, residents of the Rogers Road neighborhood are one step closer to being able to send their garbage somewhere besides their own backyard. The Orange County Board of Commissioners met with the Chapel Hill Town Council, the Carrboro Board of Aldermen and the Hillsborough Board of Commissioners Thursday night, and the group decided to look into ways to dispose of county trash to meet the proposed June 2013 landfill closure date.

The University’s switch to the Common Application has admissions staff reviewing 5,468 more applications than last year — a jump of 23 percent.