NC Supreme Court race: Judge rules 65K votes should not be discarded
A WET AND CHILLY SETUP COMING
UP. ALRIGHT, KAT, THANK YOU.
>> NOW WE HAVE BREAKING NEWS IN
THE LAST 10 MINUTES OF JUDGE
RULED THAT 60,000 CHALLENGE
VOTES SHOULD STAND IN THE
CONTESTED RACE FOR THE STATE
SUPREME COURT. THIS IS A MAJOR
DEVELOPMENT WRAL'S CAPITOL
BUREAU CHIEF LAURA LESLIE LIVE
IN DOWNTOWN RALEIGH.
>> WITH THIS DECISION AS IT
UNFOLDS HERE. LAURA.
>> AND YOU KNOW, EARLIER TODAY,
JUDGE WILLIAM PITTMAN IN WAKE
COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT SAID IT
IN REAL FROM THE BENCH. HE SAID
HE WOULD TRY TO HAVE A DECISION
AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.
OBVIOUSLY HE MEANT IT COMING
OUT JUST MOMENTS BEFORE 5
O'CLOCK TODAY AND HIS DECISION,
JUDGE PITTMAN LOOKED AT ALL
THE DIFFERENT CATEGORIES UNDER
WHICH REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE
JEFFERSON GRIFFIN WAS
CHALLENGING VOTES AND THAT AND
THAT STILL CONTESTED JUDICIAL
RACE AND HIS CONCLUSION WAS THE
COURT CONCLUDES AS A MATTER
OF LAW THAT THE BOARD'S
DECISION WAS NOT IN VIOLATION
OF CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS.
SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT HE
IS UPHOLDING THE STATE BOARD OF
ELECTIONS DECISION TO DISMISS
DIFFERENT JEFFERSON GRIFFIN'S
COMPLAINTS AND THAT DID GET RID
OF THOSE BALLOTS THAT THE NEXT
STEP. IT'S VERY, VERY LIKELY
THAT THIS WITH THIS WILL BE
APPEALED TO THE STATE COURT
OF APPEALS.
>> AND WILL PROBABLY GO TO THE
STATE SUPREME COURT BEFORE IT'S
ALL OVER.
WHICH COLLEGE CHELSEA DONOVAN
IS OUT IN FRONT OF THAT WAKE
COUNTY COURTHOUSE WITH SOME OF
THE PERSPECTIVES FROM THE FOLKS
WHO LINED UP THIS MORNING.
>> YEAH, LAURA, AS YOU SAW THIS
MORNING, THERE WERE HUNDREDS
OF PROTESTERS WAITING INSIDE
OUTSIDE THAT COULD NOT GET A
SEAT INSIDE. MANY OF RIG SAYS
PROTESTERS CALLED GRIFFIN'S
CLAIMS BASELESS. AND ABSURD.
AND GRIFFIN BASICALLY HIS
SUPPORTERS SAID THAT MANY FOLKS
HAVE BROKEN THEIR ELECTION LAWS
AND FOLKS COULDN'T VERIFY THEIR
IDENTITIES. AND OBVIOUSLY IN
THE U.S. SEES ME, OBVIOUSLY IN
THE LAST FEW MINUTES, YOU
NOTICE THAT THE JUROR, THE
JUDGE RULED AGAINST HIM.
TAKE A LISTEN TO SOME OF THE
SIGHTS AND THE SOUNDS THAT WE
CAPTURED TODAY OUTSIDE OF THE
WAKE COUNTY COURTHOUSE
PROTESTERS GATHER IN DROVES
OUTSIDE OF THE WAKE COUNTY
COURTHOUSE AS 10 FLOORS UP.
>> REPUBLICAN JEFFERSON GRIFFIN
AND DEMOCRAT ALLISON RIGGS GO
HEAD TO HEAD AGAIN IN A NEVER
ENDING BATTLE FOR A SUPREME
COURT SEAT. I JUST THINK IT'S
IT'S PRETTY ABSURD THAN JUST AN
ATTACK ON EXIT EARLY VOTED IN
DURHAM THEN GOT A LETTER IN
THE MAIL FROM THE GOP. WELL, AT
FIRST, FRANKLY, I THOUGHT IT
WAS A SCAM. GRIFFIN APPEARED TO
HAVE LOST HIS 2024 CAMPAIGN
TO UNSEAT DEMOCRATIC SUPREME
COURT JUSTICE ALLISON RIGGS BY
A RAZOR THIN MARGIN OF JUST
734 VOTES ACCORDING TO MULTIPLE
RECOUNTS. BUT GRIFFIN SAYS
60,000 VOTERS INCLUDING MAKES
SHOULDN'T HAVE VOTED AND OTHERS
VIOLATED LAWS. THESE ARE ISSUES
THAT WE RAISED PRIOR TO THE
ELECTIONS CONCERNS THAT WE HAD
WITH THE STATE BOARD GRIFFIN'S
LEGAL CHALLENGE WHILE BACKED BY
THE GOP IS CRITICIZED BY
VOTERS. I SHOWED MY
>> VOTER ID. WHAT I WENT TO
VOTE AND THAT APPARENTLY MY
MISTAKE THIS YEAR WAS USING THE
LAWS AFFORDED TO ME TO VOTE
EARLY.
>> GRIFFIN IS CHALLENGING SOME
MILITARY AND OVERSEAS VOTERS
OVER ALLEGED RULES VIOLATIONS
AS WELL AS MANY MORE PEOPLE
WHO IS IDENTIFYING INFORMATION
IS MISSING FROM THE STATE
DATABASE. EVERY VOTE COUNTS.
JUST GO AHEAD AND CAN SEE RIGGS
ADDRESSED THE CROWD AFTER THE
TWO-HOUR HEARING. BUT GRIFFIN
DECLINED.
>> NO MATTER HOW LONG THIS
TAKES, I AM COMMITTED TO
UPHOLDING THE RULE OF LAW.
>> AND SHE DIDN'T HAVE TO WAIT
VERY LONG. OBVIOUSLY, JUDGE
PITTMAN ISSUING A VERY SPEEDY
RULING IN THIS CASE. WE HAVE
YET TO HEAR FROM JEFFERSON
GRIFFIN. WE KNOW THAT HE PLANS
TO APPEAL OUR CAPITOL TEAM HAS
DONE EXTENSIVE IN-DEPTH
INVESTIGATIVE WORK ON THIS AND
YOU CAN FIND AN ENTIRE TIMELINE
IN ALL OF THEIR STORIES RIGHT