The North Carolina State Board of Elections certified Democrat Allison Riggs as the winner of the state Supreme Court Associate Justice race on May 9, 2025 — 189 days after the November 5, 2024 election — following months of court battles over Republican Jefferson Griffin's challenge to the validity of approximately 65,000 ballots. Riggs, the incumbent, won by 734 votes out of 5.5 million cast. These facts are confirmed by NC Board of Elections data, Fox News, NPR, the News and Observer, and federal court filings.
Griffin, a sitting NC Court of Appeals judge, challenged ballots cast by overseas military and civilian voters who he alleged had not met certain ID requirements, voters registered without full Social Security numbers, and others. The challenges, if upheld, would have erased enough votes to flip the result. The NC Board of Elections, state courts, and ultimately the U.S. Supreme Court — which declined to intervene in January 2025 — all allowed the challenged ballots to stand.
The dispute was particularly notable because it involved military and overseas voters protected under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA), a federal law with broad bipartisan support. Critics of Griffin's challenge said it targeted legal voters who followed all instructions given to them. Supporters said the challenge was a legitimate effort to enforce uniform voting rules.
NPR and the Brennan Center called the 189-day certification period an alarming example of post-election litigation threatening democratic norms. Fox News and the Daily Wire said Griffin had a legitimate right to challenge ballots he believed were cast contrary to state law, and that the courts — not election officials — should resolve such disputes. Both sides agreed the litigation was exhausting, costly, and unprecedented in scope for a state judicial race.
Left-Leaning Emphasis
- NPR and Brennan Center said the 189-day delay was 'a warning sign' about post-election litigation threatening election administration.
- Left outlets emphasized the challenge targeted military and overseas voters who had followed all instructions given to them.
- Critics told NPR that accepting Griffin's challenge would retroactively invalidate votes cast legally under existing rules.
Right-Leaning Emphasis
- Fox News said Griffin's challenges were legitimate exercises of legal rights available to any candidate.
- Daily Wire argued that uniform voter ID enforcement — even if applied after the fact — protects election integrity.
- Right outlets noted the courts, not election boards, made the final decision — framing judicial resolution as the appropriate process.