NC Supreme Court temporarily halts order for 60,000 challenged voters to prove eligibility
The North Carolina Supreme Court on Monday temporarily blocked a ruling that would have given over 60,000 voters 15 days to prove their eligibility or risk having their votes thrown out — potentially flipping the results in a contested race for the high court.
The ruling is the latest development in Republican Jefferson Griffin’s attempt to overturn his narrow loss in the 2024 Supreme Court race to Democratic incumbent Allison Riggs, a battle which has now persisted over five months past the election.
The order, signed by Justice Trey Allen, a Republican, came without comment.
Stays such as this one are typically granted to preserve the status quo while a higher court decides if it wants to take an appeal. The stay doesn’t necessarily mean that the court agrees that the lower ruling was wrong.
Monday’s decision comes just three days after a divided Court of Appeals panel ruled in Griffin’s favor, ordering an unprecedented cure period for most of the voters caught up in the Republicans’ sweeping challenge.
Riggs and the State Board of Elections quickly appealed the ruling and asked the Supreme Court for a temporary stay to halt the cure period from taking effect.
“Judge Griffin did not request this cure process. And the Court of Appeals cites no precedent — from any court in North Carolina or elsewhere — to support such an initiative nearly half a year after an election,” an attorney for Riggs wrote in legal filings. “Worse, the Court of Appeals’ ruling is destined to disenfranchise thousands of North Carolinians, denying them due process and equal protection under North Carolina law.”
Griffin did not object to the request for a stay. However, his lawyers did note that he would object to the Supreme Court taking up the case.
Monday’s order granting the stay did not indicate whether the Supreme Court would ultimately review Griffin’s case in full. But in the meantime, the Court of Appeals’ decision will be halted and the 15-day cure period will not begin.
The Supreme Court is composed of five Republicans and two Democrats. But Riggs, who remains on the court while the dispute plays out, has recused herself from the case.
With an even number of justices left, there is a possibility for the court to reach a 3-3 deadlock on Griffin’s case. If that happens, the most recent decision of a lower court prevails — which would be the Court of Appeals’ decision in Griffin’s favor.
However, Riggs has said that she plans to take the case to federal court if she loses at the state level.
This story was originally published April 7, 2025 at 3:26 PM.
