NC Republicans once considered impeaching Elaine Marshall. Now 3 want to unseat her.

Michael LaPaglia is not ready to let North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall’s constituents forget his allegations that she commissioned people living in the United States illegally to serve as notaries.

The two faced off against each other in the 2016 election and though LaPaglia lost, his allegations against Marshall led legislators to consider impeaching her.

But before LaPaglia can face off against Marshall, he first has to defeat two other Republican candidates in the primary who have very similar values.

Gaston County Commissioner Chad Brown and Durham businessman E.C. Sykes have also filed to run.

But all three candidates are touting their business backgrounds, their Christian faith and their strong conservative values for why they should win. All three think Marshall, a six-term secretary, has been in office too long.

In 2017, after LaPaglia lost the election, Republican lawmakers considered impeaching Marshall, which would have been the first impeachment in North Carolina history since the late 1800s. That proposal never made it out of committee.

“I continued to work with friends in the legislature and we discovered in the spring of 2017 that there were over 325 illegal alien notaries,” LaPaglia said. “I’ve continued to work with friends in the legislature and just this month we know that there are approximately 600 illegal notaries across North Carolina.”

LaPaglia said that win or lose, he plans to pursue his investigation against his opponent and that government corruption is why he ran for the office in the first place.

But Marshall said what she is doing is legal and called LaPaglia’s allegations a “zombie issue” used to distract voters and gather more money from his supporters.

“Way before I came into the office, the Supreme Court said you can’t deny notary commissions if otherwise qualified, even if they are a non-citizen,” Marshall said. “If they have a work authorization they can be notaries.”

A 1984 Supreme Court case didn’t allow citizenship to be a factor of a notary commission but in 2005 the law was updated requiring legal residency.

In 2017, Marshall’s staff told the News & Observer that she never commissioned someone in the United States under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival, but LaPaglia argues that one of the first people he met during his investigation said she was in DACA.

DACA is the Obama-era program, now in legal limbo, that gave a temporary legal status to some people who had been brought to the country as children.

Marshall said that notaries are required to take courses and tests, all offered only in English.

In addition to handling notary commissions, Marshall’s office works with businesses to boost North Carolina’s economy.

The secretary of state oversees registration forms and compliance issues for businesses, charities, lobbyists and investment advisers, among others.

Marshall, a Democrat, does not have an opponent in the primary next month. She said that she’s gearing up for a vigorous campaign in early March and disagrees with Republicans’ assertions that she’s overstayed her welcome.

“If being in office too long is a problem then have at it,” Marshall said. “Business depends on stability and certainty.”

And all three candidates want to make technological advances to streamline applications for businesses, offer better customer service and work with new businesses throughout their first years of operation in North Carolina.

Michael LaPaglia

LaPaglia expects the general election contest will be a heated race for an office that historically few North Carolinians pay attention to.

“Anytime you go against a 20-year Democrat incumbent ... I think you have to be prepared for a contentious race,” LaPaglia said.

LaPaglia has spent his career planning and building museums, visitor centers and historic sites across the country.

His favorites are the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory and some of the Smithsonian museums.

But fresh out of college, LaPaglia did work on political campaigns. “I was always interested in public policy and politics,” LaPaglia said.

He said working across the country introduced him to secretaries of states across the country. “It was a role I clearly understood,” LaPaglia said. “I don’t think a lot of people understand the role of Secretary of State.”

E.C. Sykes

His best-funded opponent, Sykes, said he has strong roots in North Carolina with ancestors dating back to the pre-Revolutionary War era.

The state’s “values gave me the opportunities to be successful in the business world here in North Carolina,” Sykes said.

But Sykes said he’s running because he sees the strong “Judeo-Christian values” in North Carolina fading. He said he’s fighting to return those values to North Carolina.

And that emphasis has gained him endorsements from social conservatives like James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family and Family Talk.

Sykes sees himself as a political outsider but is friends with former state Sen. Buck Newton — they’re close enough to be vacation buddies — and served on Ted Cruz’s campaign staff as executive director of his faith and religious liberties coalition.

Like LaPaglia, Sykes said he takes issue with the allegations that Marshall commissions notaries who are living in the country illegally.

He said both his father and brother were police officers and following the law is important to him, but he thinks Marshall isn’t doing that.

But Sykes’ campaign is focused on his business background that he said includes creating businesses and reducing wasteful spending.

He said he boasts a business degree from N.C. State and a career as CEO of two tech companies, a manufacturing company and group president of a $28 billion Fortune 500 company that employs 35,000 people in 20 countries.

He said his business skills and experience fit a run for secretary of state.

“I’ve created tens of thousands of jobs,” Sykes said. “I have more experience than Marshall or anyone running now.”

Sykes has loaned his campaign $127,000, finance records show.

Chad Brown

Brown, who now serves as a Gaston County commissioner, began his career as a minor league baseball player, works as a salesman for Pennsylvania Steel and served as mayor.

“We’re a little different,” Brown said. “People call us the dumb jock of the election by the way we do things and we bring a different background to the race.”

Brown said it made sense for him to run for this office because of his experience in the business world mixed with his experience working with legislators on both sides of the aisle.

Brown’s campaigns have been more organic than others.

He worked as a Lyft driver to talk directly with his constituents and get his name out.

He’s gone door-to-door to meet with people.

He’s had two viral videos.

He’s brought in baseball stars like retired Red Sox player Curt Schilling to help him “mingle.”

Brown said he lived out his dreams and now he wants to help his constituents live out theirs by overseeing the Secretary of State office.

“I’m here to serve,” Brown said. “We live in the greatest country in the world and with that we need to let people know that North Carolina is open for business.”

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