BACK ON THE ATTACK: Amid a sizzling economy and robust foreign investment, Gov. Roy Cooper presses for more spending on education and job training.

• Author: Mildenberg, David
• Position: NC ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Tming is a big deal in economic development, and Roy Cooper picked a great time to become governor. First elected to the General Assembly in 1986 and serving as attorney general since 2000, he pounced in 2016 and unseated Republican incumbent Pat McCrory. Since then, the economy has strengthened, the Trump administration has pushed multinationals to make more products in the U.S. and Republican lawmakers in Congress and Raleigh ?m have delivered sharply lower corporate income tax rates.

The economy's strength is evident in Bi 'sinks North Carolina's annual ranking of the largest job expansions (Pages 54-57). It reflects growth in many regions and a mix of white-collar and manufacturing jobs. While five of the six biggest jobs announcements occurred in or near Charlotte or Raleigh, most of the largest projects by investment are going up in less-populated regions such as Edgecombe and Davidson counties. While the state's unemployment rate of 4-3% remains higher than in neighboring states, North Carolina's prospects rank among the brightest in the U.S., various studies show.

Credit for the growth is split between many people and factors. "North Carolina is so good that we are always in the final four," says John Skvarla, who was the state commerce secretary during McCrory's tenure. "We are a great state tor business, with no unions, low tax rates, a great quality of life and a major focus on education."

But the governor says his decisions have put the state on the offensive. "I know that a number of companies would not have come or expanded but for the change in economic leadership and repeal of HB2," Cooper says, referring to the law that prevented transgender people from using bathrooms corresponding to their identified gender. "That has made a difference."

The understated N.C. governor lacks the flair of Nikki Haley of South Carolina or Haley Barbour of Mississippi, two former state leaders who won acclaim for their recruiting success. Nor does he have the business chops of Florida Gov. Rick Scott or Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam.

But Cooper's workhorse style is paying off for North Carolina, says John Boyd, a Princeton, N.J.-based site-selection consultant. Should Apple or Amazon place much-discussed major office projects in the Triangle, Boyd predicts Cooper's national profile will soar. "Despite being a Democrat on fiscal issues, Cooper has done a number of things we like, and our clients have a good relationship with his office," he says...