Black NC voters twice as likely to have ballots challenged in Griffin election protests
Over a month after Election Day, the race for a seat on North Carolina’s Supreme Court continues as Republican Jefferson Griffin challenges the validity of over 60,000 ballots across the state.
Griffin trails Democratic incumbent Allison Riggs by 734 votes — a margin that did not change by even a single vote after a statewide recount in the race. His election protests, however, could swing the race in his favor, if they are accepted.
A News & Observer analysis of those protests found that Black registered voters were twice as likely to have their votes challenged as white voters.
Voters aged 18 to 25 were the largest age group among the challenged voters, accounting for about 23% of all protests, despite making up about 12% of the electorate.
And while Democrats and unaffiliated voters made up the majority of the challenged voters, the analysis found, about 22% of the challenged ballots were cast by registered Republicans.
Matt Mercer, communications director for the NC GOP, said the protests were compiled solely by analyzing purported issues with ineligible voters which span all party registrations and demographics. The blame, he said, lies with the State Board of Elections for counting votes which should have been thrown out.
“This has been an incredibly partisan state board throughout the election cycle and they have been inconsistent and uncooperative,” Mercer said. “We won’t let these real problems of their own making go unaddressed.”
A hand recount in certain precincts is expected to be completed this week, but it could take months to resolve Griffin’s protests, which are already being challenged in federal court.
Riggs has declared victory in the race and said Griffin is trying to “toss votes instead of conceding.”
“We are focused on ensuring that voters are heard, not silenced, and that every lawful vote counts in this election,” Embry Owen, Riggs’ campaign manager, said when asked about the demographic disparities in the protests. “It does not matter the voter’s partisan affiliation or who they voted for. Every lawful vote must count.”
Arguments made by the election protests
Candidates are permitted to file election protests when they believe ineligible voters cast ballots. Griffin’s protests challenge voters for six different reasons, ranging from suspicion that the voter was serving a felony sentence on Election Day to a legal argument that military and overseas voters should not be able to cast ballots without ID.
The vast majority of Griffin’s protests, however, allege that voters who do not have a driver’s license number or Social Security number associated with their voter registration should have their ballots thrown out.
A federal judge appointed by former President Donald Trump has already rejected part of this argument in a case filed this summer by the Republican National Committee, but Griffin and the NC GOP argue that these voters should be considered ineligible.
“Every voter in North Carolina deserves confidence that our elections are conducted fairly and according to the law,” NCGOP Chair Jason Simmons said in a statement when Griffin filed his protests. “The integrity of the ballot box is the cornerstone of our democracy. Jefferson Griffin’s commitment to this process demonstrates his dedication to upholding the rule of law and protecting the voices of lawful voters.”
To analyze the demographics of the voters challenged in Griffin’s protests, the N&O matched the protest list to statewide voter registration data.
Black voters accounted for about 20% of all protests, and white voters accounted for about 33%. However, white voters outnumber Black voters by over three to one statewide.
When comparing the challenged voters to the total registered voters of both racial groups, Black voters were twice as likely to have their ballots contested. That difference largely persists regardless of voters’ party affiliation.
Many of the challenged voters — about 38% — did not have a race designated on their voter registration. Chris Cooper, a political scientist at Western Carolina University, said this is likely part of a growing trend of voters not filling out optional demographic categories when they register to vote.
Bob Hall, a longtime North Carolina government watchdog, noted that the state has been found to have enacted legislation that targeted Black voters in the past. He pointed to the 2016 ruling from the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals which found that North Carolina’s old voter ID law targeted Black voters with “surgical precision.”
“Over and over again, in these cases where Republican operatives and candidates and legislators are taking action to get more power — they’re doing it at the expense of Black voters,” Hall said.
Protests heading to court
The State Board of Elections, which has a 3-2 Democratic majority, is scheduled to consider Griffin’s protests on Wednesday.
Griffin has asked that one of the board’s Democratic members, Siobhan Millen, recuse herself from the case because her husband is a partner at the law firm which represents Riggs. Her husband, Press Millen, told The N&O he is not representing Riggs in any matters before the board and is shielded from his firm’s work on the case by an ethical screen.
The board’s decision may not be the final stop in the process, though.
If the board rules against Griffin, he can appeal to Wake County Superior Court. From there, the case could work its way all the way up to the state Supreme Court itself.
Meanwhile, Democrats are suing in federal court to have Griffin’s protests thrown out.
In a lawsuit filed Friday, the North Carolina Democratic Party argues that the protests could lead to “mass disenfranchisement” and violate North Carolinians’ fundamental right to vote.
“They can’t stop the results of an election just because they don’t like the fact that we won,” NCDP Chair Anderson Clayton said in a statement.
Protests also delayed a close court race in 2020
This is not the first Supreme Court election that has been significantly delayed by protests.
In 2020, Republican Chief Justice Paul Newby won his election against Democrat Cheri Beasley by 401 votes after weeks of recounts and voter challenges.
An N&O analysis at the time found that Newby’s protests also disproportionately targeted Black voters.
Beasley also filed protests, though hers aimed to restore ballots that were thrown out. The N&O found that registered Republicans were largely left out of her protests.
She conceded the race to Newby on Dec. 12 after a hand recount affirmed his victory.
In the Spotlight designates ongoing topics of high interest that are driven by The News & Observer’s focus on accountability reporting.
This story was originally published December 10, 2024 at 10:16 AM.
