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The N.C. Republican Party will see a complete leadership change at the top. GOP Vice-Chairman Wayne King announced Monday he would not seek re-election at the party's June convention. Chairman Robin Hayes previously announced he would step down.

“I am confident that the future is very bright for our party," King said in a statement. "Our new governor and our Republican majorities in the state House and state Senate are charting a new conservative vision for our state that will protect our freedoms, transform our economy and return our state to prosperity."

King recently joined Congressman Mark Meadows' office as a senior advisor. Gov. Pat McCrory is backing former Wake County GOP Chairman Claude Pope to lead the party. The list of candidates for vice-chairman is wide open. One announced candidate is former state Rep. Glen Bradley.

UPDATED: WHAT REDISTRICTING MEANS: Only one competitive congressional race in 2014. Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball political rankings show what happens when congressional districts are packed with like-minded folks. Of the state's 13 congressional races, only one is deemed competitive between parties. The seat is Democratic Congressman Mike McIntyre in District 7. McIntyre won a close race in 2012 -- one of the few where Mitt Romney won the president vote -- and another tight contest is expected in 2014. The pundits at University of Virginia give him the early edge, though, ranking the race "leans Democratic."

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A pro-gun rally outside the statehouse on Tuesday drew several hundred participants, who heard a string of speakers urging the General Assembly not to cave in to gun-control pressures.

"We're not going to compromise. We're not going to be reasonable," WPTF radio talk show host Bill LuMaye told the crowd.

Sen. Andrew Brock, a Republican who represents Rowan, Iredell and Davie counties, vowed to keep up the fight, especially protecting the legal right to carry concealed weapons.

"Each and every day people are targeted because they cannot carry," Brock told the assembled.

Several other legislators were also in attendance.

A bill filed Monday would make a declaration of support for the constitutional right to bear arms. It specifies that President Obama's attempts at gun-control would infringe on that right. It was filed by Rep. Michael Speciale, a Republican representing Beaufort, Craven and Pamlico counties.

A petition circulated at the rally to oppose the president's recent efforts to clamp down on gun violence.

State Sen. Doug Berger, a Democrat from Franklin County, said today that he's going to run for re-election in the new state Senate district that includes a swath of eastern Wake County.

The Senate District 18 is a more Republican district than the one three-term incumbent is used to running in. But Berger says he has a good shot at keeping the seat.

Rep. Glen Bradley, a Youngstown Republican, has announced he's running for the seat. Berger has come out swinging, calling Bradley "a Tea Party extremist."

There's a long way to go before the election. The redistricting plans are being challenged in court. And who's to say there won't be a Democratic or Republican primary here?

Freshman House lawmaker Glen Bradley is apparently looking for a title bump: state senator.

The Youngsville Republican's website now boasts a "Glen Bradley for N.C. Senate" banner after he was double-bunked in the redistricting process with Rep. Jeff Collins, a fellow Republican. 

Bradley would likely run in the new Senate District 18, which takes in all of Franklin County and part of Wake County, with the bulk of voters living Wake.

Bradley is best known for suggesting the state use its own currency. But last week, amid the debate on a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage, he showed his bright Libertarian colors once more in proposing to remove the state from licensing marriages because it usurps God's authority.

A proposal to make it easier for third party candidates to make it onto ballots was given a nudge forward today, but appears unlikely to become law anytime soon.

The Senate Rules Committee approved a bill co-sponsored by Rep. Glen Bradley, a Franklin Republican, to make it easier for groups of voters to be recognized as a political party. The Rules Committee passed it on to another committee for consideration before Sen. Ellie Kinnaird, a Carborro Democrat, could offer an amendment that might have lead to extended discussion.

Bradley said the bill is supported by members of both major parties, Libertarians, and Green Party members.

Under current law, a group that receives 2 percent of the vote for governor or president is recognized as a political party in the next election. The bill would lower the threshold to .25 percent of the vote for governor, president, or any Council of State member.

The bill would lower the threshold for forming a new party by petition from 2 percent of voters who voted in the most recent election for governor to .25 percent of registered voters.

The Republican-backed House redistricting plan for state House seat won the vote of two Blue Dog Democrats.

Both state Reps. Dewey Hill of Whiteville and Bill Brisson of Bladen County voted for the Republican plan. Both Hill and Brisson helped the Republicans override Democratic Gov. Bev Perdue's budget and they came out of the redistricting process satisfied with their districts.

But one Republican, Rep. Glen Bradley of Youngsville, joined with the Democrats in voting against the plan. The plan puts him in the same district as Republican Jeff Collins of Rocky Mount.

Rep. Glen Bradley, a Republican from Youngsville, has filed his bill to require the state to accept gold and silver as legal tender.

If approved, the N.C. Constitutional Hard Tender Act would allow private coin companies to register gold or silver coins or bars with the state treasurer's office to be used as legal tender within the borders of the state. Further, the state treasurer would be required to exchange the precious metals for federal dollars.

A follower of the economic theories espoused by U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, Bradley has said the bill is rooted in concern that excess foreign debt could cause the U.S. Federal Reserve to collapse, making dollars worthless.

An article about Bradley's economic views printed earlier this month in The N&O garnered widespread attention for the little-known GOP freshman. The newspaper's story was reprinted widely within the state and was featured as a link on The Drudge Report, a conservative-leaning news aggregator.

Last week, Bradley appeared for an interview on Fox News.

The national attention has not yet translated into support for Bradley's bill, however. The legislation does not currently have any listed co-sponsors.