GREENSBORO – Three organizations and two voters filed a federal lawsuit Sept. 22 seeking to block two North Carolina absentee-ballot directives before the Nov. 3 general election.
The complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina by the North Carolina Alliance for Retired Americans, North Carolina Asian Americans Together, Down Home North Carolina and voters Vaeme Afokpa and Raquel Nelson. It names the State Board of Elections, state board officials and the Durham and Guilford county election boards as defendants.
The lawsuit challenges parts of a State Board memo updated Sept. 4. One provision directs county election workers to spoil a ballot and reissue an absentee package when the ballot arrives inside an unsealed inner container-return envelope, even if that envelope is inside a sealed outer return envelope. The same process applies when the ballot is outside the inner envelope.
The other challenged provision directs county workers to review whether the signature on the absentee application appears to be the name of the voter assigned to that application. The memo says an illegible signature is not a deficiency if it appears to be the voter’s name and requires officials to presume it belongs to the voter unless there is clear evidence otherwise.
The plaintiffs allege the envelope rule violates the Civil Rights Act’s Materiality Provision because sealing the inner envelope does not determine whether a voter is qualified. They also argue that the envelope and signature directives violate First and Fourteenth Amendment protections by burdening voting without adequate procedures. Those claims are allegations, and the court has not ruled on them.
The complaint seeks declaratory and injunctive relief that would bar enforcement of the challenged provisions. The State Board memo says its procedures are intended to ensure eligible votes are reviewed under uniform standards in all counties while allowing officials to address ballot-envelope deficiencies.
WUNC reported that a State Board spokesperson declined to comment on the lawsuit. The outlet also reported that State Board member Stacy “Four” Eggers IV had defended the guidance as an update to county processing that would not change the experience for voters who properly complete their absentee materials.
Because the directives apply to county election boards statewide during the general election, any court order could affect how absentee ballots are reviewed across North Carolina.
Sources
- Federal complaint filed Sept. 22, 2026
- WUNC report on the lawsuit
- North Carolina State Board of Elections numbered memo
Photo Credit: Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress, public domain. L. Richardson Preyer Federal Building and Court House in Greensboro, photographed Nov. 18, 2013. Cropped and resized.
Editor’s Note: This article was drafted with the assistance of artificial intelligence and was reviewed and fact-checked by a member of the NC Political News editorial team before publication.