Democratic NC Gov. Cooper Sues Over New Elections Board Law

Democratic North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper on Tuesday sued Republican lawmakers over a measure that would do away with his authority to pick election board members.

Cooper's lawsuit comes as a voting rights group also filed a lawsuit that challenges a law that they believe will discourage young people from casting ballots.

Both the measure eliminating Cooper's board selection authority and the one the group claims will disenfranchise young voters came last week after the GOP-majority General Assembly overrode Cooper's veto.

The governor's lawsuit targets GOP state House Speaker Tim Moore, state Senate leader Phil Berger and the state, and was filed in state court to challenge the measure that would require him to transfer his election board powers to the legislature.

Cooper argues that this violates the state Constitution and state Supreme Court rulings that determine the governor's power over selecting election board members.

The law would also expand the size of the election board from five members to an even eight members, taking away to possibility of a majority and having a 4-4 split between Democrats and Republicans. The governor's party currently holds three seats on the board.

Republicans urge that the shift while help with bipartisanship in the legislature, while Cooper and his allies argued that it is a GOP power grab that could cause board impasses.

The law is scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1, 2024.

The other lawsuit filed by Democracy North Carolina, the North Carolina Black Alliance and the League of Women Voters of North Carolina in federal court on Tuesday challenges changes to a law that allows someone to register to vote and cast a ballot during the early-voting period, as well as pushes up absentee ballot deadlines.

The lawsuit alleges that the new restrictions on these laws violate the U.S. Constitution and civil rights law.