North Carolina Republican lawmakers voted to seize key powers for the incoming Democratic governor, passing a sweeping bill before the GOP loses its veto-proof majority in the legislature next year.
The legislation would authorize the appointment of members of the state board of elections, which oversees voting in North Carolina, to state auditor, an office that will be held by Republican Dave Boliek after defeating Democrat Jessica Holmes in Nov. 5 options.
Power is currently in the governor’s office, which will remain in Democratic hands after the attorney general, Mr. Josh Stein, defeated Lt. Gov. Republican Mark Robinson. Republicans have always sought control of the State Board of Elections, which has always been controlled by the same party as the governor, but the courts have thwarted their previous efforts.
The law would also shorten the time for voters to correct ballot errors and require precincts to count ballots more quickly.
The changes are just part of a larger, 131-page bill that includes funding for hurricane relief and would advance a number of other Republican priorities. The legislation was drafted behind closed doors and introduced as a substitute in committee Tuesday morning, replacing the discarded bill on dental procedures.
Both GOP-controlled chambers passed it in just two days, though three Republicans opposed the measure in the House on Tuesday. After the Senate passes the bill on Wednesday, it goes to the desk of Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who criticized this measure as a “power grab.”
“State Board employees were not consulted about this important law that transfers the powers of the State Board of Elections and makes major administrative changes that may make it impossible for the election boards to ensure that all eligible votes are counted, especially the many elections that went into the election,” said Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the State Board of Elections. Elections, in other words.
After Wednesday’s vote, Senate Republican Phil Berger defended the bill, saying “it’s all within the rules we have,” according to the Raleigh News & Observer.
“We have expressed concern for several years about how the Board of Elections has been operating under Roy Cooper’s nominees,” Berger said. “And we’ve tried several times to get the point across that we need balance on the board that’s responsible for counting votes, making decisions about elections. The Democrats said, no, no, no, hell no. And so we just thought it was time for us to go ahead and take action.”
North Carolina’s election board is currently split 3-2 in favor of Democrats.
The law also proposes to prohibit the attorney general, the office of the Democrats who also controlled power in this month’s elections, from taking legal positions contrary to those of the legislature. This would prevent the incoming attorney general, Mr. Jeff Jackson, from refusing to fight for laws passed by the legislature, as Stein did with the state’s new abortion law last year.
The new bill will also take away some of the governor’s power to fill judicial vacancies and create new Superior Court positions that are appointed by legislative leaders.
Republicans are on the verge of losing the upper hand in the Legislature and are awaiting a recount in the state House race, where the Democrats are leading in the GOP-led district. That means they won’t be able to override any future vetoes from Stein without Democratic support.
Stein is replacing Cooper, whose administration has remained at odds with the Republican-led Legislature on the battlefield.
“Many people and communities are hurting and need our help,” Stein said in a letter to X on Tuesday. “But instead of stepping up, Republicans in the General Assembly are taking over and they’re taking revenge on politics.”
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com