All living previous governors of North Carolina are supporting current Governor Roy Cooper’s legal challenge to Senate Bill 749, which seeks to reform the state’s election oversight.
According to the North Carolina Office of the Governor, these past governors from both parties filed a brief with the North Carolina Court of Appeals opposing the law, which was enacted despite Governor Cooper’s veto and with no Democratic votes.
Republican and Democratic governors, including Hunt, Martin, Easley, Perdue, and McCrory, have all remarked on the situation.
Earlier this year, a bipartisan superior court panel permanently halted the bill, declaring it an unconstitutional power grab, but legislators have appealed the decision.
Cooper’s statement read: “All living North Carolina governors – Republican and Democrat – agree this legislation is unconstitutional and unjustified.” The state’s tradition of gubernatorial-appointed election boards dates back to 1901 and has secured fair elections for over a century, according to the North Carolina Office of the Governor.
In a brief to the North Carolina Court of Appeals, they say that the bill, passed without Democratic votes and despite Cooper’s veto, might lead to partisan gridlock in elections.
The former governors emphasize that North Carolina has managed elections fairly and warn that the bill may delay outcomes by shifting decision-making from voters to courts or legislatures and undermining bipartisan cooperation in election management, according to the North Carolina Office of the Governor.