The Republican candidate for a state supreme court race in North Carolina has conceded the election after more than six months of contesting the results.
For months, Jefferson Griffin, currently a judge on the North Carolina court of appeals, had fought in courts to try and overturn his 734-vote loss to Allison Riggs in November. Last month, the North Carolina supreme court said that more than 1,300 voters who had successfully cast ballots had to prove their eligibility or else they would be thrown out. On Monday, a federal judge blocked that ruling and ordered state election officials to certify the election.
“While I do not fully agree with the District Court’s analysis, I respect the court’s holding – just as I have respected every judicial tribunal that has heard this case,” Griffin said in a statement to the Associated Press. “I will not appeal the court’s decision. I wish my opponent the best and will continue to pray for her and all the members of our court system here in North Carolina. I look forward to continuing to serve the people of North Carolina.”
The prolonged legal contest has raised significant alarm among legal observers because it could lay out a playbook to try to overturn election results after voting has concluded.
The Associated Press called winners in more than 4,400 races last year. The Griffin-Riggs race was the only one that remained uncalled.
After the election, Griffin sought to have about 65,000 votes thrown out. Even though voters had not done anything wrong, his lawyers argued that the rules state election officials had set well in advance of the election were illegal.
More than 60,000 of the challenges involved votes from people who lacked either a driver’s license number or the last four digits of their social security number in their voting record. He also challenged the votes of overseas voters who had cast a ballot without providing photo ID and people classified as “never residents” – children of North Carolina residents who turned 18 while living abroad.
