Chop Wood, Carry North Carolina 4/9

Hi North Carolina,

I’ve heard from many of you who marched in the Hands Off! protest all around the state. Sources say there were more than 11,000 of you at seven or more rallies. North Carolina strong! And we need you to stay strong as we continue to fight for the sanctity of elections everywhere as the battle for the NC State Supreme Court seat continues to be fought.

There is a lot of analysis out there and the developments unfold almost daily. Last night, NC Democrats hosted a webinar with Justice Riggs to give an update on the appeals process and the status of the case. The simplest upshot is that Justice Riggs is going to keep fighting until the very end. She’s confident she will prevail but needs our help. At this moment, Justice Riggs and NCDems is asking for only these things below, and nothing more right now, so that energy is focused in the most useful and strategic way.

What You Can Do

• Let us know you're ready to jump into action when the time is right at ncdp.org/protectthevote.

• Are you on the Griffin list? (If yes, let us know here so we can reach out with next steps when we have them)

• Check out our toolkit for talking points, links to amplify on social media, answers to popular questions, and more.

• You can watch and share the recording of last night's Justice Riggs briefing here.

You may be wondering why the ballot cure effort is not on this list. First, the 15 day countdown has NOT started. Justice Riggs explained that there is now plenty of time as this goes through the legal process. They have already found that 30,000 of the challenged voters’ registrations actually do have full information. They are still working on this by checking the different databases that have registration data. Reaching out to ‘cure’ these votes that are actually correct, would only bog down the workers and potentially create more problems. That is why they are not doing any more outreach right now, although they DO want people to sign up to volunteer so the volunteers can be contacted quickly when and if they are needed.

If you want a deeper dive of this issue, The Contrarian recently published a particularly illuminating explanation so I have summarized and edited it for brevity.

North Carolina's Election Is Under Threat

With support from out-of-state special interest groups, North Carolina’s Republican-controlled courts are trying to overturn a lawful election result by discarding up to 65,000 legally cast votes.

Last November, Justice Allison Riggs defeated Republican Judge Jefferson Griffin for a seat on the North Carolina Supreme Court by 734 votes—a result confirmed by two recounts and an audit. Only after losing did Griffin challenge voter registrations as illegal. Two Republican judges on the state Court of Appeals have since ordered a rushed recount, giving voters just 15 days to fix ballot issues—if their ballots aren't thrown out entirely.

Judge Toby Hampson dissented sharply, stating Griffin hadn’t shown any actual illegal votes and warning the ruling amounted to “mass disenfranchisement.”

This case is unfolding alongside broader efforts by North Carolina’s Republican supermajority to entrench power. After Griffin’s initial challenge failed, the legislature passed laws stripping power from the Democratic governor and attorney general over elections. These moves follow the state Supreme Court’s approval of extreme gerrymanders that helped Republicans clinch a slim U.S. House majority.

If Riggs is removed and replaced by Griffin, Republicans will have a 6-1 majority on the state Supreme Court, locking in partisan control for years—and possibly helping fuel election-subversion efforts nationwide.

Griffin is backed by a vast dark-money network tied to Trump-aligned operatives, including “Stop the Steal” lawyer Cleta Mitchell and billionaire Jeff Yass. Their strategy: disqualify ballots based on voter registration data and target voters—especially those with “Hispanic-sounding” names.

These groups—Citizens for a Better NC, Voter Education Network, Stop Liberal Judges, and more—are funded by national Republican entities and right-wing donors tied to Leonard Leo, architect of the U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority. Several Leo-affiliated groups have filed legal briefs supporting Griffin, using misleading claims of voter fraud.

Despite a temporary stay from the state Supreme Court, the threat remains. If the court deadlocks, Griffin could win by default. Riggs and the Board of Elections may return to federal court, where the outcome could ultimately reach the U.S. Supreme Court—dominated by Leo-backed justices.

Griffin could still stop this. If he truly respects voters, he should concede and end this attack on democracy.

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Hang in there NC. You and Justice Riggs got this!

Jess (and NC partner Marylin + Andrea who helps with state newsletters)