CHARLOTTE — The legal battle over incomplete voter registrations in North Carolina, which delayed the finalization of a state Supreme Court race, has concluded with a settlement.
“No one really is claiming any of these voters did the wrong thing. So are they still being in some ways, punished? I don’t know,” said Chris Cooper, a political scientist at Western Carolina University. “On the other hand, every compromise I’ve ever known in my entire life has been one where both sides are a little uncomfortable. So maybe this is a sign of a good compromise.”
The Department of Justice sued the North Carolina State Elections Board to address the issue of missing voter information.
The settlement reached requires the board to contact affected voters to update their information.
If voters cannot be reached, they will still be allowed to cast a provisional ballot in the next election.
The missing information affects about 6,500 voters in Mecklenburg County, 800 in Cabarrus County, 550 in Iredell County, and 1,000 in Union County.
Although 80,000 voters may seem small in a state with 11 million people, North Carolina is a highly competitive state politically, and the Supreme Court race was decided by just 734 votes.
While the case was ongoing, Republicans took control of the state elections board after passing a law that reduced the incoming Democratic governor’s power.
The new board’s settlement with the DOJ aims to resolve the voter registration issues.
The North Carolina State Board of Elections has classified voters with missing information as “inactive,” but they can still vote if they provide the missing details by the time counties canvass after the next election.
This resolution is seen as a compromise to ensure voter participation while addressing registration discrepancies.
VIDEO: Charlotte primary turnout abysmal as early voting locations expand to 9
©2025 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/LH3JSJEF3VBLRJLJQESEAG34AM.png)
