This year marks the 67th annual lighting of the WRAL-TV tower in Raleigh, an annual tradition that has grown to include celebrations with towers at American Tobacco Campus in Durham and Rocky Mount Mills.


WRAL Tower Lighting: WRAL lights the towers in Raleigh, Durham and Rocky Mount

WRAL Tower Lighting

Michelle Mackonochie - familiar to WRAL viewers after five years as part of the morning news team - will anchor the 4 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. newscasts with Dan Haggerty, and the 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts with Gerald Owens. 

WRAL welcomes Michelle Mackonochie to evening newscasts beginning Jan. 5

Michelle Mackonochie

What it really means to be an organ and bone marrow donor

Our Pet of the day likes to know where his people are at all times, meet Clarence. He's a plott hound mix who is the whole package: dog-friendly, people and child-friendly, crate-trained and house-trained! Clarence is about 1 to 2 years old and weighs 50 pounds. This boy is very intelligent and food-motivated, so he loves learning new skills and tricks. If you are interested in meeting Clarence, please fill out the application at redbarnrescue.com.

<p>PRIVATE GYM, A SPA, A POOL AND EVEN A FULL STAFF. SIGN ME UP. &gt;&gt; INVITE ME. HAVE A DAY LIKE TO KNOW WHERE HIS PEOPLE ARE AT ALL TIMES. THIS IS CLARENCE SEES A PLOT HOUND MIX IS THE WHOLE PACKAGE. DON FRIENDLY PEOPLE FRIENDLY. CHILD FRIENDLY CRATE TRAINED. HOW STRAIN CLARENCE'S ONE TO 2 YEARS OLD, WEIGHS 50 POUNDS. THIS BOY IS VERY INTELLIGENT. HE'S FOOD MOTIVATED. SO WE LOVE LEARNING NEW SKILLS AND TRICKS. IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN MEETING CLARENCE, YOU CAN FILL OUT THE</p>

Ryan Bisesi

Pet of the Day for May 16, 2023

Get the latest WRAL WeatherCenter Forecast whenever you need it, including the DUALDoppler5000 and the 7-Day Forecast.

<p>Meteorologist Grant Skinner here in the Weather Center. Some more brief showers are possible today, mainly light rain, and that best chance will be south of the triangle as a front lingers to our south. We'll see lingering cloud cover as well. Some breaks in the clouds late today, but otherwise mostly cloudy. Then warming up, highs will push into the 70s this weekend, so it'll be much warmer. Here's Futurecast. Let's start with 1 p.m. You can see scattered light rain, mainly to the south, but we have sun that's worked its way north. And then we'll, this will gradually work south and east through the rest of the day. By 5:30, the majority of it is to our south and east, but a couple of brief showers are possible to the north, and we'll keep some lingering cloud cover as well all the way through Saturday morning. And we could see some breaks in the clouds for our northern spots, but I think we'll stay mostly cloudy. The majority of the day. And the additional rain that we'll see through Saturday is only around 0.1 of an inch for the triangle, but some higher amounts towards the coastline where they'll see some more consistent rain as that front stays to the south. Some lingering clouds, brief showers a day, highs reach the mid-50s for most spots. Some areas could reach the upper 50s. We're back to the 70s, a high of 74 degrees on Sunday, but it doesn't last long. Look at Monday and Tuesday, back to around 50 degrees for our highs. That's because our next front will pass through the area. There'll be a chance for some isolated showers in the first half of next week. Looks like mainly rain for that. Again, highs at around 50 both Monday and Tuesday, then back to the mid 60s on Wednesday and the 70s again by Thursday. So some ups and downs over the next 7 days. We're in the 50s today. Back in the 70s on Sunday, we'll have more sunshine this weekend after a cloudy Friday with some brief showers possible.</p>

WRAL WeatherCenter Forecast

Nightly N.C. Education Lottery drawings during the 11 p.m. News.

Good evening. I'm Gayle Hurt. Welcome to tonight's drawings for Thursday, February 26, 2026. Well, let's get started tonight with our Carolina pick 3. Our first winning numbers are 2. Our second number tonight is 8, and the third number this evening is 0, and our pick 3 Fireball number is a 6. Join me for tonight's show. Is our auditor from Preston, CBA. Now let's move to the Carolina pick 4. Good luck everyone that first winning pick 4 number. It's a 7. Our second number is 4. 3rd number tonight is a 3, and the fourth number in our pick 4 is a 6. And our pick for Fireball number here it comes, it's 5. We're turning now to the Carolina Cash Five. If no one wins the top prize tonight, tomorrow's top prize is estimated at $212,000. Good luck, everyone is that first winning cash 5 number. It's 32, our second number. 9. 3rd number tonight is a 35. Our fourth number is 4, and the final number in our cash 5 this evening is 22. The North Carolina Education Lottery has contributed over $12 billion to education. Get your winning numbers right here every night in your exclusive station for the North Carolina Education Lottery.

Evening Pick 3 Pick 4 and Cash 5

A car has apparently caught on fire in a crash Thursday afternoon on I-87 near Knightdale in Wake County.

Car apparently catches fire on I-87

Daytime Pick 3 and Pick 4 drawings are held at 3 p.m. daily. They can be seen as live or on-demand video.

Good afternoon. I'm Louis Fernandez. Welcome to this afternoon's drawings for Thursday, February 26, 2026. Let's get started with Carolina pick 3. The first pick three number is 7, the second is 0, and the third is 8, and our pick three fireball number is 2. Joining me for this afternoon's drawing is our auditor from Preston CPA. Now let's move to Carolina pick 4. The first pick 4 number is 0. The second is 0. The third is 3, and the fourth is. 3. And our big four Fireball number is 3. The North Carolina Education Lottery has contributed over $12 billion to education thanks to your support. Get your winning numbers each day at 3:00 p.m. and 11:22 p.m. here in your exclusive station for the North Carolina Education Lottery.

Daytime Pick 3 and Pick 4 Drawing

Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday Powerball drawings, as shown live on WRAL.

Well, good evening, America. I'm Laura Johnson. Tonight we've got another life-changing jackpot for you. It's worth an estimated $217.4 million. So get those tickets out. Let's play that first number up is $50. Followed by the number 54. Tonight we're gonna meet NJB who won $50,000 playing Powerball. Now for the rest of those numbers, we've got 56, 52. Rounding it out with 64, your Powerball number tonight. Good luck, everyone. 23 and your power play multiplier is 2. Let's take a look at those numbers one last time. Remember, there are multiple ways to win. We'll see you back here Saturday night. Good night, everyone. It's time to play America's favorite jackpot game. This is.

Powerball Drawing

Amazon celebrates a major expansion of its delivery network across North Carolina with the opening of five new delivery stations in communities from the mountains to the coast. N.C. Lt. Gov. Rachel Hunt and Deputy Secretary of Commerce Kenny Flowers will speak as part of a behind-the-scenes tour and ribbon cutting at Amazon's new Tarboro delivery station, one of five new delivery stations that recently opened in Tarboro, Jacksonville, Southern Pines, Mount Airy and Hayesville.

Lt. Gov. Rachel Hunt, Amazon celebrates delivery expansion across NC

Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger delivers the Democratic response to President Donald Trump’s 2026 State of the Union

Of what a new nation unlike anything the world had ever seen could be. The United States was founded on the idea that ordinary people could reject the unacceptable excesses of poor leadership, band together to demand better of their government, and create a nation that would be an example for the world. And this year, as we celebrate 250 years since America declared our independence from tyranny, I can think of no better place to speak to you as we reflect on the current state of our union. Tonight, as we watched our nation's lawmakers gather for a joint session of Congress, we did not hear the truth from our president. So let's speak plainly and honestly, and let me ask you, the American people watching at home, 3 questions. Is the president working to make life more affordable for you and your family? Is the president working to keep Americans safe both at home and abroad? Is the president working for you? As I campaigned for governor last year, I traveled to every corner of Virginia, and I heard the same pressing concern everywhere. Costs are too high in housing, healthcare, energy, and childcare, and I know these same conversations are being had all across this country. Because since this president took office last year, his reckless trade policies have forced American families to pay more than $1700 each in tariff costs. Small businesses have suffered, farmers have suffered, some losing entire markets. Everyday Americans are paying the price. And even though the Supreme Court struck these tariffs down 4 days ago, the damage to us, the American people, has already been done. Meanwhile, the president is planning for new tariffs, another massive tax hike on you and your family. And Republicans in Congress, they remain unwilling to assert their constitutional authority to stop him. They're making your life harder. They're making your life more expensive. They're even making it more difficult to see a doctor. Rural health clinics in Virginia and across the country are already closing their doors thanks to the so-called One Big Beautiful bill championed by the President and Republicans in Congress. And tonight the president celebrated this law, the one threatening rural hospitals, stripping healthcare for millions of Americans, and driving up costs in energy and housing, all while cutting food programs for hungry kids. But here in Virginia, I am working with our state legislature to lower costs and make the Commonwealth more affordable. And it's not just me. Democrats across the country are laser focused on affordability in our nation's capital and in state capitals and communities across America. In the most innovative and exceptional nation in the history of the world, Americans deserve to know that their leaders are focused on addressing the problems that keep them up at night. Problems that dictate where you live, whether you can afford to start a business, or whether you have to skip a prescription. In order to buy groceries. So I'll ask again. Is the president working to make life more affordable for you and your family? We all know the answer is no. I grew up in a house of service. My mother was a nurse and my father was a career law enforcement officer. I began my career by following in my father's footsteps as a federal agent working money laundering and narcotics cases. I worked side by side with local and state police to keep our community safe and to uphold and enforce the law. Law enforcement officers across the country know that it is a unique responsibility to do the serious work of investigating crimes, comforting victims, and making arrests. It's about building trust, and that requires an abiding sense of duty and commitment to community. And yet our president has sent poorly trained federal agents into our cities where they have arrested and detained American citizens and people who aspire to be Americans, and they have done it without a warrant. They have ripped nursing mothers away from their babies. They have sent children. A little boy in a blue bunny hat, children to far off detention centers, and they have killed American citizens in our streets, and they have done it all with their faces masked from accountability. Every minute spent sowing fear is a minute not spent investigating murders, crimes against children, or the criminals defrauding seniors of their life savings. Our president told us tonight that we are safer. Because these agents arrest mothers and detain children. Think about that. Our broken immigration system is something to be fixed, not an excuse for unaccountable agents to terrorize our communities. After working in law enforcement, I continued my career of service as a CIA officer, working undercover to protect the United States and our allies from global threats, terrorism, nuclear weapons, and the aggression of adversarial nations around the globe. But as the president spoke of his perceived successes tonight, he continues to cede economic power and technological strength to Russia, bow down to to China, bow down to a Russian dictator, and make plans for war with Iran. Here's the truth. Over the last year, through Doge, mass firings, and the appointment of deeply unserious people to our nation's most serious positions, our president has endangered the long and storied history of the United States of America being a force for good. So I'll ask again, is the president working to keep Americans safe, both at home and abroad? We all know the answer is no. In his speech tonight, the president did what he always does. He lied, he scapegoated, and he distracted, and he offered no real solutions to our nation's pressing challenges, so many of which he is actively making worse. He tries to divide us, he tries to enrage us, to pit us against one another, neighbor against neighbor, and sometimes he succeeds. And so you have to ask, who benefits from his rhetoric, his policies, his actions, the short list of laws he's pushed through this Republican Congress. Somebody must be benefiting. He's enriching himself, his family, his friends. The scale of the corruption is unprecedented. There's the cover-up of the Epstein files, the crypto scams, cozying up to foreign princes for airplanes and billionaires for ballrooms, putting his name and face on buildings all over our nation's capital. This is not what our founders envisioned, not by a long shot. So I'll ask again, is the president working for you? We all know the answer is no. But here's the special thing about America. On our 250th anniversary, we know better than any nation what is possible when ordinary citizens like those who once dreamed right here in this room, reject the unacceptable and demand more of their government. We see it in the determination of students organizing school walkouts all across the country, whose voices are becoming so powerful that the governor of Texas seeks to silence them. We see it in the bravery of Americans in Minnesota standing up for their communities, from peacefully protesting in sub-zero temperatures to carpooling children to school, so that their immigrant parents are not ripped away from them in the parking lot. As a mother of three school-aged daughters, I am inspired by their bravery. But I am sickened that it is necessary. And Americans across the country are taking action. They are going to the ballot box to reject this chaos. With their votes, they are writing a new story, a more hopeful story. In November, I won my election by 15 points. And we won 13 new seats in our state legislature. Because voters decided they wanted something different. Our campaign earned votes from Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and everyone in between, because they knew as citizens, they could demand more, that they could vote for what they believe matters, and that they didn't need to be constrained by a party or political affiliation. This is happening across the country. New Jersey elected Mikey Sherrill as governor in a double-digit victory. Democrats flip state legislative seats in places like Georgia, Iowa, Mississippi, and Texas. The list goes on and on. Ordinary Americans are stepping up to run in the spirit of our forefathers. They are running to demand more and to do more for their neighbors and communities. I know the story well. I first ran for office in 2018 alongside dozens of other Democrats who did the seemingly impossible, flipping 41 seats in Congress. In my case, I was the first Democrat elected in 50 years, swinging our district 17 points. Those who are stepping up now to run will win in November because Americans, you at home. Know you can demand more, and that we are working to lower costs. We are working to keep our communities and our country safe, and we are working for you. In his farewell address, George Washington warned us about the possibility of quote cunning, ambitious and unprincipled men rising to power. But he also encouraged us all Americans to unite in a common cause, to move this nation forward. That is our charge once more, and that is what we are seeing across the country. It is deeply American and patriotic to do so, and it is. How we ensure that the state of our Union remains strong, not just this year, but for the next 250 years as well, because we, the people have the power to make change, the power to stand up for what is right, the power to demand more of our nation. May God bless the Commonwealth of Virginia and may God bless the United States of America.

Democrats deliver response to Trump's State of the Union address

President Donald Trump will use his State of the Union speech to defend his agenda. On Tuesday, he returned to the House chamber days after the Supreme Court struck down his sweeping tariff policy. 

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