Rucho To Retire From State Senate

One of North Carolina's most powerful state senators will not be running for re-election. Republican Senator Bob Rucho plans to retire after 17 years in the General Assembly. 

Rucho has been a controversial figure during his time in state government.

He's served as co-chair of the Senate Finance Committee, where he led an effort to implement tax changes made by the Republican-controlled legislature.

He was also an architect of revised electoral maps in North Carolina, which critics on both sides of the political spectrum held up as prime examples of gerrymandering.

Rucho defended those charges in an interview with WFDD last year, saying the maps followed strict court-ordered guidelines.

Rucho, a 67-year-old dentist from Matthews has told media outlets that he's achieved everything he wanted to in state government, and has been planning his retirement for some time.

But his announcement came as a surprise to his colleagues and constituents in Mecklenburg County.

Rucho will serve out his seventh non-consecutive term in the Senate.