North Carolina Attorney General Stein recovering from stroke

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein said Tuesday he is recovering from a “minor stroke” that prompted doctors to remove a small blood clot.

Stein, a Democrat currently in his second four-year term as the state’s top law enforcement official, said in a tweet that he had stroke-like symptoms Monday night after he and his wife, Anna, walked the family dog.

Stein, 55, said he was taken to a hospital, where the clot-removal procedure was successful. Stein’s office also confirmed his medical emergency and his stay in a Raleigh hospital.

“I’m feeling back to normal now and am beyond blessed to have no lingering effects,” Stein wrote, adding that his physician wants him to stay in the hospital another day or two, then get some rest before returning to work.

“Anna is my hero for recognizing that something was wrong and insisting that I go to the hospital,” Stein said, while also praising the emergency medical technicians who took him for medical help. The couple has three children.

“I have a tremendous amount to be thankful for this morning, especially my loving family,” he added. Politicians from both sides of the aisle offered Stein their best wishes on social media.

Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper tweeted that he spoke to Stein on Tuesday morning and “he’s doing well. Already back at it on the phone and corresponding. Can’t keep a good man down.”

Stein, a former state senator, has been considered a potential 2024 gubernatorial candidate to succeed Cooper, who is barred by term limits from running again. By narrow margins, Stein was elected attorney general in 2016 and reelected in 2020.

Stein led the consumer protection division in the Department of Justice when Cooper was attorney general before Stein went into private practice.

Stein announced May 17 that he had tested positive for COVID-19 the day before but said he had no symptoms.

While attorney general, Stein has been known for his involvement in a national opioid settlement and for a landmark legal settlement that forced electronic cigarette giant Juul Labs Inc. to pay $40 million to North Carolina and take more action to prevent underage use and sales.

Stein, the son of civil rights attorney Adam Stein, grew up in Chapel Hill. He went to Dartmouth College and later Harvard University, where he received a law degree. He was campaign manager for John Edwards in his successful U.S. Senate bid in 1998.