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North Carolina Gubernatorial Candidate Josh Stein misled the media last month on his donations to his campaign, misattributing roughly $1 million in out-of-state funding as in-state. Prior to submitting his report to the North Carolina State Board of Elections, Josh Stein’s campaign produced a press release claiming that, out of the $6 million he raised...

North Carolina State Board of Elections campaign finance reports covering the first half of 2023 were due on July 28th, covering the first half of 2023. National groups are watching North Carolina as a battleground state for the next presidential election. With that perception, we have already started seeing money bleed into our statewide races....

North Carolina’s election reform bill, Senate Bill 747, would prevent “Zuck bucks” from being used to influence electionsThe bill aims to prevent unlawful influencing of voters by tracking who assists in marking ballotsIt would make it illegal to barcode ballots and would reduce electioneering organizations’ ability to chase down absentee ballots Previously I had discussed...

There have been some complaints about several election reform bills being considered in the General Assembly, including a bill on election observers. A Bill Clarifying What Election Observers Can and Cannot Do I recently noted how a bill in the General Assembly, House Bill 772, would help clarify what election observers can and cannot do...

Saturday, July 15th, marked the due date for the latest federal campaign finance reports for those seeking office in 2024.  Though neither of North Carolina’s senate seats are up for election next year, national eyes will still be glued to North Carolina.  This is partly due to North Carolina’s position as a pivotal swing state...

The North Carolina State Board of Elections has tried to illegally restrict election observers several times recentlyVagueness both in state law and in regulations increases the potential for conflict between election observers and poll workersHouse Bill 772 would clarify what election observers may or may not do at election sites Observers are an essential part...

Below is a copy of my public comment submitted to the North Carolina State Board of Elections (SBE) on July 1, calling on them not to certify the ExpressVote 4.2.1.0 ballot marking device. The SBE is taking public comments on certifying ExpressVote and other systems from ES&S through July 5 at 1:00 PM. Click here...

Senate Bill 749, “No Partisan Advantage in Elections,” passed along party lines in the North Carolina  Senate and now moves on to the state House. As the bill’s name implies,  SB 749  changes the composition of the state board of elections and county boards from favoring the governor and his political party to an even...

The proposed changes to mail-in voting would have minimal impact — in 2022, 99.8% of all ballots were in by election dayThe impact of the bill’s changes to same-day voter registration simply requires one additional form of ID and provides multiple ballot cure processes for voters prior to the official county canvassThe bill would add...

Here are some questions: Should government agencies train employees to believe that one race or sex is inherently superior to another race or sex? Should those agencies tell employees that an individual should be discriminated against or receive adverse treatment solely or partly because of his or her race or sex? Should agencies teach their...

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Alabama’s congressional map was a racial gerrymanderThe totality of several racial gerrymandering cases creates a safe harbor between violating the Voting Rights Act and unconstitutionally using race to draw congressional districtsSince the General Assembly has already shown they can draw VRA-compliant districts without using racial data, the Alabama ruling...

I offered public comments on two election reform bills before the North Carolina Senate Redistricting and Elections Committee on June 14. My prepared comments (which assumed a two-minute speaking time per bill) are below. SB 747: Elections Law Changes I am speaking in support of SB 747. The bill has a host of election reforms....

The North Carolina State Board of Elections uses two computer systems to manage data such as campaign fiance reports, voter registration, and election countsThe Board has asked the General Assembly for $13.6 million to upgrade those systemsUpgrading those systems would provide for more efficient and secure elections administration The North Carolina State Board of Elections...

Senators unveiled a large set of election reforms on June 1, many of which the John Locke Foundation had advocated for over the past several years. Senate Bill 747 has the unassuming moniker “An Act to Make Various Changes Regarding Elections Law.” That is appropriate since most of the bill focuses on changes to election...

Looking at the latest Civitas Poll, one question jumped out at me: North Carolinians’ faith in elections, however, is not assuring. Only half of likely North Carolina voters (50.7%) believe this year’s elections will be free and fair. Interestingly, younger people are more inclined to question the fairness of our elections, with nearly 40% of...

The North Carolina Supreme Court recently issued three significant election rulings regarding Voter ID, Political Gerrymandering, and Felon voting. These decisions have led many left-wing activists to proclaim this “the end of democracy.” The irony of this claim is clearly lost on them. Courts had previously morphed themselves into a policy-making body in all three...

The North Carolina Supreme Court recently issued three significant election rulings regarding Voter ID, Political Gerrymandering, and Felon voting. These decisions have led many left-wing activists to proclaim this “the end of democracy.” The irony of this claim is clearly lost on them. Courts had previously morphed themselves into a policy-making body in all three...

I spent the better part of two years advocating for North Carolina to join the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), a program that would be a “strong tool to help keep our elections more secure.” Since then, it has become clear that ERIC has problems, including opaqueness in how the organization handles data and unnecessary...

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper has recently made the national media rounds claiming that the current General Assembly is a partisan gerrymander.  Does this claim have any merit?  The short answer is not at all.  The original 2022 maps for state House, Senate, and Congressional maps were challenged under both racial and partisan gerrymandering claims. ...

The North Carolina General Assembly is set to take up the veto override of SB20, the Care for Women, Children, and Families Act, much to the chagrin of Gov. Roy Cooper, who has conducted a pressure campaign in an attempt to swing legislators. While critics have claimed the bill is a total ban on abortions,...

The North Carolina Supreme Court correctly decided that partisan gerrymandering claims are “nonjusticiable, political questions”The General Assembly should avoid using partisan data when it redraws maps later this yearNow is a good time to consider redistricting reform While the North Carolina Supreme Court correctly affirmed that questions of partisanship in redistricting are out of its...

When the North Carolina Supreme Court ruled on our state’s voter ID law on April 28th, the justices only had to answer one narrow question: “[Does the voter ID law] violate the meaningful protections set forth in Article I, Section 19 of the North Carolina Constitution?” The court found that it does not. The state...

The North Carolina Supreme Court upheld felon disenfranchisement, reversed an earlier ruling overturning congressional and state legislative districts, and reinstated voter ID in a dramatic day of rulings on April 28. It dismissed all three cases “with prejudice,” meaning that plaintiffs cannot bring these suits before North Carolina courts again. Here is some context of...

I wrote last year about persistent problems with both the North Carolina State Board of Elections (SBE) and county boards of elections limiting election transparency: The SBE worked to suppress election observers and limit transparency in 2020, a pattern of behavior that continues today. There was also a problem with county elections boards limiting transparency...