House race in limbo after North Carolina
voter fraud claims
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[December 01, 2018]
By Andrew Hay
(Reuters) - North Carolina’s board of
elections on Friday declined to certify Republican Mark Harris' apparent
victory in a U.S. House of Representatives race, calling instead for a
public hearing to investigate claims of voter fraud and irregularities.
Harris edged Democrat Dan McCready by 905 votes in the Nov. 6
congressional election. But the validity of hundreds of mail-in absentee
ballots from a rural county has been called into question, the elections
board said on Twitter.
The board voted 7-2 to hold a hearing due "to claims of numerous
irregularities and concerted fraudulent activities related to absentee
mail ballots," Joshua Malcolm, vice chairman of the board of elections,
said in a recorded session on Friday.
It is the second time in as many years the board has considered voter
fraud accusations in Bladen County, with charges after the 2016
elections ultimately dismissed.
In a statement, Harris said there were not enough ballots in question to
affect the outcome of the race. He urged the board to immediately
certify him the victor, while continuing to conduct their investigation.
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The contest will not affect the balance of power in the new Congress
that sits in January. Democrats already gained enough seats to take
control of the House, while Republicans will still hold a Senate
majority.
Harris was on Capitol Hill on Friday participating in freshman
orientation. He participated in the office lottery and selected a space
in the House office buildings.
The North Carolina board is expected to look into accusations that
people came to the doors of Bladen County voters ahead of the Nov. 6
vote and asked them to hand over ballots, sometimes unsealed and
uncompleted. Filling out a ballot for another person, or destroying it,
is illegal.
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![](../images/120118pics/news_p29.jpg)
Mark Harris, Republican candidate from North Carolina's 9th
Congressional district speaks as U.S. President Donald Trump and Ted
Budd, Republican candidate from North Carolina's 13th district look
on during a campaign rally in Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.,
October 26, 2018. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo
![](../images/ads/current/fitzpatrick_lda_SPONSOR_2017.png)
Investigators are also expected to scrutinize unusually high numbers
of absentee ballots cast in Bladen County in both the general
election and the May 8 primary, in which Harris defeated Republican
incumbent congressman Robert Pittenger.
The hearing will be held by Dec. 21.
The North Carolina Democratic Party said there was enough evidence
of fraud to cast doubt on the fairness of the election.
The party has said it has affidavits from two voters who said their
absentee ballots were collected by a woman who told them she would
finish filling them out herself.
"We applaud the board’s bipartisan decision to delay certification
and fully investigate the concerning allegations," said the party's
state chairman Wayne Goodwin in a statement.
(Reporting By Andrew Hay in New Mexico; Editing by Colleen Jenkins
and Grant McCool)
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