Article Summary –
Democrat Justice Allison Riggs claims victory in the tightly contested North Carolina Supreme Court race, though results aren’t official. Riggs leads Republican opponent Jefferson Griffin by 700 votes. A recount is in progress, with Griffin challenging 60,000 votes based on rejected legal theories.
“I can say with confidence that I have won my race for the North Carolina Supreme Court!” Riggs posted on social media.
The 2024 NC State Supreme Court election results are unfolding. While results await official confirmation, with a lead exceeding 700 votes, incumbent Justice Allison Riggs, a Democrat, claims victory in the tightest race among the state’s high-profile contests.
The election outcome won’t change the court’s makeup; Republicans maintain a 5-2 majority. If Riggs secures victory, Democrats might flip control in 2028. If Griffin, her opponent, succeeds in the recount or legal challenges, Republicans could hold control for a decade.
The margin between Riggs and Griffin is .02 percentage points, enabling a recount. Griffin requested and received approval for this recount, expected to conclude by Nov. 27, according to election officials.
Griffin has submitted 300 pages challenging over 60,000 votes, a larger-than-usual standard process step. Recounts and challenges seldom change vote counts significantly, as cited by Riggs in her victory claim.
“Tonight, I can say with confidence that I have won my race for the North Carolina Supreme Court!” Riggs posted Wednesday night. She added, “A recount in this race is well underway, and six counties have already completed their recounts. We expect this recount to confirm our win and the excellent work by our state election officials.”
60,000 challenges based on scant evidence
Griffin’s ballot challenges often rely on legal theories previously rejected by courts.
Griffin aims to discard ballots from voters missing some identifying data, like driver’s licenses or social security digits. This data is required by current law but irrelevant to prior registrations. Missing data doesn’t render a voter ineligible, say election officials.
Invalidating the 60,000 ballots would discard nearly 60,000 legal votes.
Before voting began, North Carolina and national Republicans sued to remove 225,000 from voter rolls. A judge denied this effort.
US Chief District Judge Richard Myers noted that supporting Republicans would let judges and citizens cancel voter registration based on mere accusation, shifting power from democratic governance.
Griffin also challenges votes from North Carolinians’ adult children living overseas, a claim rejected in court. State law states these individuals can vote if their North Carolina resident parents were born overseas.
Regardless of election officials’ decisions on these challenges, Republicans might contest the vote counting process legally, aiming to bring the matter to the state Supreme Court, where they hold a majority.
A precedent of close court races
In North Carolina, recounts are rare in statewide elections, except for Supreme Court races.
In 2020, Democrat Cheri Beasley sought a recount after losing to Republican Paul Newby by 406 votes. The recount reduced the margin to 401 votes.
Beasley filed nearly 90 challenge documents, mostly protesting rejected ballots. Following the recount, Beasley canceled her challenges and conceded on Dec. 12.
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