RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) – The Republican National Convention claims victory in its ongoing lawsuit against the North Carolina Elections Commission.
Parties to the lawsuit — including the RNC and the North Carolina Republican Party, the NCSBE and the Democratic National Committee — have reached an agreement to drop the lawsuit that could have affected 255,000 votes, according to records filed Monday.
The agreement still needs approval from Chief U.S. District Judge Richard E. Myers II, the judge presiding over the lawsuit.
Republican National Committee sues North Carolina elections board, saying it has ‘blatant disregard for law’
“The consent judgment reached by both parties is a significant victory for election integrity and a clear rebuke to Democrats who sought to weaken basic safeguards,” said Chairman Gruters. “For too long, the North Carolina Elections Commission has failed to meet basic safeguards that protect our elections. North Carolina Democrats want votes counted without driver’s license numbers or Social Security numbers, as required by law. The RNC will always work to ensure that our election laws are clear, fair and consistently enforced.”
CBS 17 previously reported that in a 2024 lawsuit, the Republican National Committee accused the state election board of failing to enforce laws that require noncitizens to be removed from voter rolls.
The Republican National Committee said NCSBE failed to properly discard voter registrations that contained partial or missing information, including driver’s license numbers, Social Security numbers and more.
When CBS 17 sought statements from when the lawsuit was first filed, NCSBE called the claims “absolutely false.”
The case of Alison Riggs and Jefferson Griffin
It’s the same issue that has arisen in months-long litigation between two candidates for state Supreme Court justice, Allison Riggs and Jefferson Griffin.
Federal judge orders certification of North Carolina Supreme Court election in favor of Allison Riggs
Justice Myers II ruled in May 2025 that the NCSBE must certify the results of the Supreme Court seat election the previous November. A federal judge said throwing away ballots violated people’s rights.
“The order, judgment, and statute provide that 1. the retroactive invalidation of the absentee ballots of overseas military and civilian voters violates those voters’ substantive due process rights; 2. the remediation process violates the equal protection rights of overseas military and civilian voters; and 3. the absence of any notice or opportunity for eligible voters to contest their wrongful designation as nonresidents violates procedural due process and creates an unconstitutional burden on the right to vote.”
What a judge can approve
Under the terms of the agreement, a judge may order NCSBE to:
-
admit that they allow voters with incomplete registration to participate in elections
-
No longer accepting incomplete information – including lost driver’s license numbers
-
Gather all missing information from voters
-
Reject ballots of voters whose registration has not been corrected
The Republican National Committee said it is also working to enforce voting requirements in Florida, Montana and New Hampshire.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports and streaming video, visit CBS17.com.