(The Center Square) – With 292 ballots in question and the difference of votes counted 734, the North Carolina State Board of Elections on Friday voted to dismiss remaining protests by Republican Jefferson Griffin in his race against Democrat Allison Riggs.
On the 45th day after Election Day, Seat 6 on the state Supreme Court remains in litigation started by Griffin. And Friday’s board action did not include mention of issuing a certificate of election.
Colin Loftin, spokesman for the state board, wrote in an email to The Center Square, “Once the written decision is issued, likely on Monday, then the certificate of election will issue unless any of the candidates obtain a stay of the issuance of the certificate of election within 13 days of that written decision being issued.”
Republican board members Kevin Lewis and Stacy Eggers were against what the latter called a “sweeping motion” of dismissal, advocating for each candidate’s protest to be voted on individually. Carrying the motion of Democrat Jeff Carmon were Siobhan Millen and Chairman Alan Hirsch.
Hirsch said he “can’t for the life of me” understand why there was opposition, saying counsel for the protestors had “conceded” the protests examined by county boards had reached a point that were not outcome determinative. Lewis disagreed any “concession” had been and multiple times across the two-hour, 17-minute meeting reminded last week’s rejection of more than 60,000 ballots in protest is in litigation and itself outcome determinative.
On Wednesday, Griffin asked the bench he hopes to join to take action, and the state elections board on Thursday filed paperwork asking for it to be removed there and heard in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
The dismissal of protests puts Griffin’s route only through appeals in the courts. Further state board action, potentially, would be dictated by court rulings.
The state board met for “consideration of protests of Jefferson Griffin, Ashlee Adams, Stacie McGinn and Frank Sossamon initially considered by county boards of elections.” In each race, the state board was given information showing the ballots potentially in question would be less than the difference in the vote count.
In a series of votes, the protests of each race all ended pending any legal appeals. All of the Republicans were denied election victories.
On Election Night, with 2,658 precincts reporting, Griffin led Democratic incumbent Allison Riggs by 9,851 votes of 5,540,090 cast. Provisional and absentee ballots that qualified were added to the totals since, swinging the race by 10,585 votes to a Riggs win by 734 votes.
Democrat Bryan Cohn defeated Sossamon by 228 votes of 42,202 cast for House District 32 seat; Woodson Bradley defeated McGinn by 209 votes of 124,311 cast for Senate District 42; and Terence Everitt defeated Adams by 128 votes of 119,206 cast for Senate District 18.
