NC Supreme Court election protest to remain in state court, for now

On Tuesday, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that North Carolina courts are the more appropriate avenue to hear the ongoing election protest for the time being.

Democratic Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs and Republican Court of Appeals Judge Jefferson Griffin are neck-and-neck in their 2024 Supreme Court bids.

The U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday held that the most appropriate avenue for a monthslong election dispute was the North Carolina state court system, at least for the time being.

While the court’s order doesn’t completely rule out the possibility of federal intervention in the future, it deals a major blow to Democratic Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs’ efforts to have her apparent 734-vote victory certified.

"We affirm the district court's decision to abstain from exercising federal jurisdiction,” the three-judge panel wrote in an order.

Republican Court of Appeals Judge Jefferson Griffin is seeking to overturn the election by having over 66,000 ballots discarded due to some combination of voters lacking state residency, not providing a photo ID when voting and lacking incomplete registration information.

The next hearing in the ongoing election protest is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Friday in Wake County Superior Court.

While Democrats have reason to be hopeful about their chances in Wake County Superior Court, the state Court of Appeals and Supreme Court are overwhelmingly conservative, with 12-3 and 5-2 GOP majorities, respectively.

Griffin is hoping GOP-friendly state judges or justices will ultimately side with him, particularly on his effort to toss out the ballots of 5,509 North Carolinians in Democrat-heavy counties who serve in the military or live overseas and didn’t provide a photo ID when voting.

Of note, in an order last month, three North Carolina Supreme Court justices appeared highly receptive to Griffin’s claims, which would almost assuredly result in an overturned election in his favor.

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