Federal court steps into NC Supreme Court race
This much you know (NYT explainer):
In North Carolina, the Republican candidate for a State Supreme Court seat has refused to concede to the Democratic incumbent, even though two recounts by a state elections board confirmed that he lost the November election by a few hundred votes.
The Republican challenger, Judge Jefferson Griffin, who currently sits on the North Carolina Court of Appeals, has instead embarked on an extraordinary monthslong effort to toss out scores of ballots. The race is the last in the nation to be uncertified.
News broke last night that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit granted incumbent Justice Allison Riggs’s “Emergency Motion for Injunction and Motion for Status Conference” in the federal district court:
Recognizing that the district court has not yet had the opportunity to exercise its jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1443 and address Riggs’ motion for preliminary injunction based on her federal constitutional claims, we grant her motion for a stay. In furtherance of federal jurisdiction, we enjoin the North Carolina State Board of Elections from mailing any notice to any potentially affected voter pending the district court’s resolution of Riggs’ motion for a preliminary injunction.
Even though Riggs leads in the uncertified 2024 vote count by 734 votes, “Judge Griffin’s challenge has ping-ponged through federal and state courts,” the Times adds. Election Law Blog’s Rick Hasen calls Griffin’s effort “likely an unconstitutional attempt approved by North Carolina state courts to overturn the results an election,” writing:
The Fourth Circuit panel explained that its stay order was necessary “[in] furtherance of federal jurisdiction.” It did not offer a detailed analysis. The dissent argued that the court had no jurisdiction to issue this order as it was an unappealable temporary restraining order, and that the district court did not abuse its discretion in allowing the cure process to go forward.
The North Carolina Democratic Party has its activists on standby to contact remaining challenged voters that need to supply additional information to their Boards of Elections for their votes to count in this race. That effort looks to be on hold.
Hasen adds:
What happens now is that things will slow down. The trial court will decide if Justice Riggs has a good constitutional case on the merits. Whoever loses that will likely appeal to the Fourth Circuit (likely before a different panel, if today’s order was from a motion’s panel), with the case potentially ending up at the Supreme Court. I expect things will continue to be expedited, but it will take months more to fully resolve.
Toast
The longer-term Republican strategy is to further pack North Carolina’s Supreme Court and institute retention elections that incumbents win 98 percent of the time. Meaning they’d have a permanant Republican court majority to go with their gerrymandered federal and state districts.
Griffin is fighting for his party’s goal at the risk to his political life. Likely at the instigation of shadowy Republican strategists, he’s spent months trying to overturn his election loss by throwing out tens of thousands of constituents’ votes from all parties. The effort has raised his statewide name recognition, and not in a good way. If he loses here, Griffin would need voters he’s pissed off to vote for him when he’s up for reelection to the North Carolina Court of Appeals in 2028. Meaning, if he loses this case he’s toast.
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