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Raleigh -- March 12, 2024: A three-judge panel made up of two Republicans and one Democrat declared
on Tuesday that a North Carolina statute that transfers the governor's authority to name county and state elections officials to the legislature is unconstitutional.
The governor appoints members of the state elections board in addition to hundreds of county ones under the current arrangement. The political party of the governor who is currently in office is favored by the composition of both the state and county boards.
The bill, which was enacted as Senate Bill 749, would grant the General Assembly—which is presently headed by Republicans—the authority to make appointments. Additionally, it would establish boards with a 50/50 representation of the two political parties.
Republicans argue that would be fair, but opponents claim it would result in never-ending deadlocks in the voting process.
Judges Edwin Wilson, Lori Hamilton, and Andrew Womble of the Superior Court had earlier prevented the statute from taking effect last autumn. Wilson is registered as a Democrat, but Hamilton and Womble are Republicans.
The measure represents "the most stark and blatant removal of appointment power from the Governor" since a prior attempt to take that authority away from the governor six years prior, they noted in their seven-page opinion.
The ruling was applauded by Democratic Governor Roy Cooper, who had vetoed the bill. The Republican-majority state Supreme Court is a potential appeal venue for the legislature.
WNCTimes
