The North Carolina Republican lawmakers recently passed a bill that would strip incoming Democratic governor and attorney general of key powers before losing their veto-proof supermajority in the Legislature. The legislation gives the authority to appoint members to the state’s election board to the state auditor, a Republican, instead of the governor’s office. The bill also includes changes to shorten the time for voters to fix ballot errors and require counties to count ballots more rapidly. The legislation, which is part of a larger bill that includes hurricane relief funding, was passed quickly by both chambers of the GOP-controlled Legislature. The Governor, Roy Cooper, who is a Democrat, has criticized the bill as a “power grab.”
The bill also proposes to prohibit the Attorney General from taking legal positions contrary to those of the Legislature and strips the governor of some of his power in filling judicial vacancies. Republican lawmakers defended the bill as a necessary step to ensure balance on the State Board of Elections and to prevent legal challenges to laws passed by the Legislature.
The passing of this bill comes as Republicans are on track to lose their supermajority in the Legislature, which would make them unable to override any future vetoes from the Attorney General without Democratic support. The Attorney General, Jeff Jackson, has criticized the bill as an act of political retribution by the Republicans in the General Assembly.
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