House rushes vote on elections bill. 7 things you need to know

A House committee on Thursday advanced a bill that makes a number of election law changes. It cleared with limited discussion and no opportunity for the public to weigh in.

North Carolina lawmakers meet to consider a sweeping elections bill on Thursday, June 26, 2025.

A North Carolina legislative committee on Thursday advanced a measure that stands to make sweeping changes to election administration.

It was approved without opportunity for public comment and little time for members to discuss it.

Here’s seven things you need to know that are in the bill:

• Sam Hayes, executive director of the State Board of Elections would be able to make a sweeping agency overhaul. The bill enables him to convert 25 positions into exempt roles, paving the way for political appointees to replace about 38% of civil servants. Hayes, who has separately asked for $1.2 million for seven senior management position, said he’d like to surround himself with like-minded people who share his vision for the agency. “We are looking at a rework of the agency. and we are looking for efficiencies from top to bottom," Hayes told committee members. But he told reporters after the vote that he didn’t ask for 25 politically exempt positions and isn’t trying to replace career staff members en masse. Democratic Rep. Phil Rubin of Wake County unsuccessfully offered an amendment to remove the provision from the bill. “This will shake faith in elections,” Rubin said.

• State and county elections officials would be prohibited from "promoting voter turnout in any election.”

• Appears to create a loophole for foreign nationals to contribute to ballot measures in the state. Contributions would be permissible if they are “derived solely from funds generated by operations in the United States” and “all decisions concerning the contribution are made by an individual or group of individuals who are citizens or lawful permanent residents of the United States." The foreign national themselves couldn’t make a direct personal contribution, but could through a business entity. Hayes said he had no role in this provision being crafted, nor a provision that raises the 48-hour reporting requirement near the end of an election from $1,000 to $2,000.