{"id":3408,"date":"2026-06-18T19:05:04","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T19:05:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=3408"},"modified":"2026-06-18T19:05:04","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T19:05:04","slug":"nc-election-law-overhaul-bill-vote-delayed-as-voting-rights-advocates-ramp-up-opposition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=3408","title":{"rendered":"NC election law overhaul bill vote delayed as voting rights advocates ramp up opposition"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) \u2014 A North Carolina House vote on a sweeping elections overhaul bill hit a speed bump at the General Assembly after Republican leaders said lawmakers need more time to review the proposal, a move voting rights advocates say reflects growing public opposition to the bill.<\/p>

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House Bill 958 would create a new statewide post-election audit process, give county election boards a larger role in reviewing and challenging potentially ineligible ballots after an election, require absentee ballots to arrive by Election Day, and limit how election officials can encourage voter turnout.<\/p>\n

According to Republicans, the changes are needed to strengthen election integrity and improve confidence in election results.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want voting to work efficiently and with integrity, and that means that everybody entitled to vote should be able to vote,\u201d said state Rep. Hugh Blackwell (R-Burke), the bill\u2019s sponsor.<\/p>\n

The massive 36-page omnibus bill was pulled from the House Rules Committee agenda this week, delaying what could have been a fast track to the House floor. Speaker Destin Hall (R-Caldwell) told reporters on Tuesday he expected a floor vote the following day, although the bill still needs some work.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a big deal and something we need to caucus more thoroughly so members can understand it,\u201d he said. \u201cBut right now, I expect us to vote on it [Wednesday] and then it\u2019ll go to the Senate.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs I understand it, the chairs are largely ready to pass it out of this chamber and then start their discussions with their Senate counterparts,\u201d Hall continued.<\/p>\n

But that Wednesday vote didn\u2019t happen.<\/p>\n

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\"A<\/figure>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n

The delay comes as a coalition of voting rights groups intensifies its campaign against the legislation, arguing it would inject politics into election administration and make voting more difficult.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were ashamed,\u201d said Brian Kennedy, the policy director at Democracy NC. \u201cThey were ashamed to pass this bill. That\u2019s why they dropped it in the middle of the night on a Friday, and that\u2019s the same reason why they withdrew it once they saw how many people had eyes on it.<\/p>\n

Kat Robles, senior voting rights counsel for Forward Justice said, \u201cIt\u2019s confusing for the average reader to understand. That\u2019s what they want. They don\u2019t want you to understand it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important now is always to remember that if your vote wasn\u2019t so important, they wouldn\u2019t be working so hard to take it away from you,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Voting rights advocates gathered outside the General Assembly on Wednesday morning to call on lawmakers to withdraw the bill, arguing it\u2019s trying to solve problems that don\u2019t exist.<\/p>

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\u201cYou throw red tape into an already complicated process and then you selectively audit counties of your choosing where you plant problems and then go try to find them,\u201d said Brooks Fuller, policy director of Common Cause NC. \u201cYou find the problems you created and then you make hay over that and cry election integrity. You\u2019re poisoning a system that was working before it was so partisan, and that\u2019s troubling.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the advocates\u2019 biggest concerns is a provision that would give the state auditor broader authority in post-election audits.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t want you to understand that it would allow the state auditor, who is himself a partisan elected official, to select counties at his discretion to do post-election audits,\u201d Robles said.<\/p>\n

According to Republican State Auditor Dave Boliek, post-election audits wouldn\u2019t change the outcome of elections.<\/p>\n

\u201cPost-election audits focused on the processes and procedures of elections will help improve confidence in our system of voting,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is common-sense electoral policy that will deliver additional accountability and transparency to voters across North Carolina.\u201d<\/p>\n

Robles also blasted the provision that would prevent election officials from encouraging people to vote.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is like saying you own a restaurant, but you can\u2019t go online and say come eat dinner today,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is saying a state or county board election member cannot say today is election day. Register to vote. Voting is good. That\u2019s their job.\u00a0This is a First Amendment violation, plain and simple.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Republican leaders have not linked the bill\u2019s delay to public opposition, voting rights advocates say the packed Tuesday committee hearing and growing scrutiny from voters helped slow its progress through the General Assembly.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is the power of the people,\u201d Kennedy said. \u201cWe have the ability to hold them accountable by watching and staying on top of them, and watching what they are doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

The coalition of voting rights advocacy organizations plans to keep up the pressure on lawmakers until they withdraw the bill, with a rally scheduled Monday at 5 p.m. on the Halifax Mall outside the General Assembly.<\/p>

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A North Carolina House vote on a sweeping elections overhaul bill hit a speed bump at the General Assembly after Republican leaders said lawmakers need more time to review the proposal, a move voting rights advocates say reflects growing public opposition to the bill.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3406,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3408","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nNC election law overhaul bill vote delayed as voting rights advocates ramp up opposition - Raleigh Moving News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=3408\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NC election law overhaul bill vote delayed as voting rights advocates ramp up opposition - 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