North Carolina lawmakers are scheduled to reconvene this upcoming Monday, July 29 at noon and adjourn again on Thursday, August 1. Per the legislature’s adjournment resolution, lawmakers could take up some business such as voting to override gubernatorial vetoes or adopting conference reports, however, without all 170 House and Senate members expected to be back in Raleigh together until later this year, it remains to be seen what will be on the schedule next week.
Oversight Meeting
The House Select Committee on Oversight and Reform met Tuesday morning to discuss the State Board of Elections’ handling of third-party candidates seeking to have their presidential candidates included on North Carolina’s ballots this November. The committee invited Andy Jackson, Director of the Civitas Center for Public Integrity at the John Locke Foundation, Alan Hirsch, Chairman of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, and Karen Brinson Bell, Executive Director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, to speak to the committee about the State Board’s decision to certify or deny ballot access this year for three third parties.
The committee was interested in the Board’s decisions regarding the Constitution Party, the We the People Party, and the Justice for All Party. To be formally recognized for the 2024 election in North Carolina, a political party must collect 13,865 valid signatures, or 0.25% of the total number of voters who voted in the most recent general election for governor, according to Executive Director Brinson Bell’s presentation. The petition must be signed by at least 200 registered voters located in three different congressional districts throughout North Carolina.
Before the State Board of Elections verifies and audits the collected signatures on each of the third-party petitions, county boards of elections are required to research each of the signatures. A signature is counted by the county board if the signer’s information matches a voter’s registration and if the signature on the petition sheet bears a reasonable resemblance to the voter’s signature on file. Verification at the county level must also be completed within two weeks from the date the petition is submitted to the county board of elections.
The Constitution Party began its petition process after being decertified as a party in North Carolina in 2021. The Constitution Party submitted more than enough validated and reviewed signatures and was officially recognized on July 9, 2024.
The We The People Party submitted 4,444 validated and reviewed signatures over the requirement, however, additional information was required to be provided to the State Board about what was communicated to the petition signers about the general purpose and intent of the new party. After receiving enough information to satisfy the State Board’s request, the We The People Party was recognized on July 16, 2024.
Lastly, the Justice For All Party began its petition process earlier this year and initially submitted 3,276 validated and reviewed signatures over what is required, in addition to a letter from organizers stating that the circulators trained by the party were instructed to tell the signers of the purpose and intent of the party, including that its near-term purpose is to nominate Cornel West for president. The State Board requested additional information about what was communicated to petition signers about the purpose and intent of the new party. However, when State Board staff contacted several of the petition signers, many indicated that they did not recall signing the petition or never signed it at all. The Board ultimately voted not to recognize the Justice For All party on July 16.
Chairman Hirsch and Executive Director Brinson Bell both defended the Board’s decision to certify two of the three parties, arguing that the decision was based on the law and the facts of each of the cases, not political affiliation.
During his testimony, Jackson provided the committee with several potential policy changes that may help reduce concerns over ballot access, including improving communication by the State Board of Elections to the parties regarding their expectations about informing petition signers of their purpose and intent, moving the deadline to submit petitions from June 1 to May 1 to provide the State Board with additional time for review, and banning per-unit payment for signature collection.
Upcoming Legislative Meetings
Monday, July 29
12:00 PM House: Session Convenes
12:00 PM Senate: Session Convenes