WASHINGTON – Committee on House Administration Ranking Member Rodney Davis (R-Ill.) today sent a letter to the North Carolina State Board of Elections regarding the acceptance of a settlement agreement, which could change election protocols after voters have already cast their ballots. The settlement, which was accepted by a judge on Friday, would change the requirements for absentee ballots under state law. More than 300,000 voters have voted by absentee and more than a million have requested absentee ballots already. This ruling is being challenged in federal court.

"Whether it's with the Heroes 2.0 Act House Democrats passed last week or in states across the country, Democrats are trying to change the rules of the election mid-game and North Carolina is no different," said Davis. "Not only does this settlement go against what was decided by the state legislature, but these last-minute changes would mean more than 300,000 voters have cast their ballots under a different set of rules than the rest of North Carolina voters will. Additionally, changing the rules so close to an election can lead to voter confusion and significantly increase the risk of disenfranchisement."

CLICK HERE for a signed copy of the letter below.

Dear Board Members Circosta, Anderson, and Carmon and Executive Director Bell:

As Ranking Member of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on House Administration, which has broad jurisdiction over election issues, I write to you to share my concerns regarding the North Carolina State Board of Elections' ("NCSBE") proposed settlement with North Carolina Alliance for Retired Americans. This letter addresses this proposed settlement and requests a response to reassure me, as well as the voters of North Carolina, that—despite the ill-advised timing of these proposed changes—the NCSBE will conduct this election fairly and impartially.

The NCSBE boldly proclaims that it " . . . is the state agency charged with the administration of the elections process . . ."[1] Presumably, this means a free, fair and equitable elections process, yet—unbelievably—mere weeks before Election Day and after nearly 320,000 North Carolinians have already voted,[2] the NCSBE is attempting to change the rules of the election. Recently, the NCSBE entered into a proposed settlement with an organization represented by unabashed Democratic lawyer Marc Elias, who is arguably one of the most partisan political operatives in the election bar and represents a veritable laundry list of Democratic Party organs and affiliated groups. To be clear, Mr. Elias is not focused on good governance; rather, he traverses the country, picking up clients sympathetic to his main goal, which is to score victories for Democrats in court,[3] even when those ideas have been defeated at the ballot box. Yet, he is the person to whom NCSBE has chosen, by virtue of this settlement, to abdicate its responsibility to administer a free, fair, and equitable election. Since the North Carolina General Assembly has already rejected a number of the policies in this proposed settlement,[4] and state and federal courts have also ruled against such drastic changes,[5] I am left with no other obvious explanation for the Board's actions than partisan politics. Apparently, the NCSBE is focused more on scoring baseless political points by kowtowing to the Democrats' hired gun than administering an election North Carolinians can trust.

Regardless of the Board's motivations for these changes, there is simply not enough time to implement them four weeks before Election Day and equally for all voters. This election is already underway, and our Constitution demands that all North Carolinians cast their ballot under the same set of rules.^[6] As of the date of this letter, nearly 320,000 North Carolinians have voted,[7] and hundreds of thousands more have requested ballots. Local elections officials are already administering this election, and any sort of massive, last-minute course correction is sure to cause confusion, leading to election administration errors and omissions at the expense of North Carolina voters. If, after the election, the Board feels that these policies merit further consideration, it should work through the appropriate, lawful channels and engage in the appropriate voter education. But the middle of an election is never the time to change the rules. Such mid-stream changes are neither fair nor equitable and risk disenfranchising voters who—understandably—may not realize that the rules have shifted under their feet.

This sort of political gamesmanship with something as important as the vote is wholly unacceptable. North Carolinians understand better than most the need for careful and transparent election administration free from political games, and the NCSBE should focus its efforts on these admirable and necessary goals. You might recall that the state saw a massive election scandal unfold in 2018 when political operatives tampered with thousands of unlawfully harvested ballots,[8] destroying the legitimacy of an election and leading to the NCSBE's appropriate refusal to certify the election in North Carolina's 9th congressional district. Importantly, had the NCSBE instead certified that election, this Committee would have exercised its authority to conduct an investigation on behalf of the U.S. House of Representatives and made a recommendation to the full House whether to seat either candidate or to order a new election.[9] In light of the serious election administration concerns laid bare by this proposed settlement, we will not hesitate to exercise our constitutional authority now or in the future to ensure that congressional elections are administered with integrity and fairness in North Carolina.

These recent developments have left me deeply concerned about the administration of this election in North Carolina. Please respond with a detailed explanation describing how the Board will address these concerns and ensure this election is administered with fairness and equity in North Carolina.

Please submit your response to my office by October 12, 2020. If you have any questions, please contact my staff at the Committee on House Administration at (202) 225-8281 and ask for Caleb Hays, Chief Legal Counsel for Elections.

Sincerely,


Rodney Davis
Ranking Member