NC high court denies Stein request, allows GOP takeover of state elections board
The ruling means that appointments to the board by State Auditor Dave Boliek, a Republican, are allowed to stand pending the lawsuit, which will likely take months to resolve.
The Associated Press first reported the high court's ruling.
Stein's lawsuit challenges the constitutionality of a law enacted by the GOP-dominated General Assembly last year that shifted authority for appointments to the elections board from Stein to Boliek.
On April 30, the North Carolina Court of Appeals allowed the law to take effect, reversing the order of a lower court that ruled the law unconstitutional, The News & Observer reported at the time.
On May 1, Boliek made appointments to the Elections Board that shifted the board from a 3-2 Democratic majority to a 3-2 GOP control.
In its ruling Friday, the majority on the N.C. Supreme Court wrote that 'the Court of Appeals' ruling was not manifestly unsupported by reason or so arbitrary that it could not have been the result of a reasoned decision.'
In her dissenting opinion, Associate Justice Allison Riggs, a Democrat, wrote that the Supreme Court majority 'is rewriting precedent and creating an explanation for an unexplained Court of Appeals order in an effort to upend 125-years status quo for the North Carolina State Board of Elections while this case winds its way through the courts.'
Friday's ruling also lets Boliek proceed with choosing chairpersons of the 100 county election boards beginning in late June.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Associated Press
13 minutes ago
- Associated Press
House GOP clears key hurdle on Trump's big bill, pushing it closer to vote
WASHINGTON (AP) — Up all night, House Republicans voted pre-dawn Thursday to advance President Donald Trump's tax and spending cuts package, recouping after GOP leaders worked almost around the clock trying to persuade skeptical holdouts as they race to send the bill to his desk by the Fourth of July deadline. A roll call that started late Wednesday finally closed almost six hours later, a highly unusual stall on a procedural step. Trump, who had hosted lawmakers at the White House earlier, lashed out at the delay. Once the gavel struck, 219-213, the bill advanced to a last round of debates toward a final vote, which is expected later Thursday morning. 'Our way is to plow through and get it done,' House Speaker Mike Johnson said, emerging in the middle of the night from a series of closed-door meetings. 'We will meet our July 4th deadline.' The idea of quickly convening to for a vote on the more than 800-page bill after it passed the day before in the Senate was a risky gambit, one designed to meet Trump's demand for a holiday finish. Republicans have struggled mightily with the bill nearly every step of the way, often succeeding by the narrowest of margins — just one vote. Their slim 220-212 majority leaves little room for defections. Several Republicans are balking at being asked to rubber-stamp the Senate version less than 24 hours after passage. A number of moderate Republicans from competitive districts have objected to the Senate bill's cuts to Medicaid, while conservatives have lambasted the legislation as straying from their fiscal goals. 'What are the Republicans waiting for??? What are you trying to prove???' Trump railed in a post-midnight vote. He also warned starkly of political fallout from the delay 'COSTING YOU VOTES!!!' It fell to Johnson and his team to convince them that the time for negotiations is over. They needed assistance from Trump to close the deal, and lawmakers headed to the White House for a two-hour session Wednesday to talk to the president about their concerns. Trump also worked the phones. 'The president's message was, 'We're on a roll,'' said Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C. 'He wants to see this.' Republicans are relying on their majority hold of Congress to push the package over a wall of unified Democratic opposition. No Democrats voted for bill in the Senate and none were expected to do so in the House. 'Hell no!' said House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, flanked by fellow Democrats outside the Capitol. In an early warning sign of Republican resistance, during a first procedural vote that also stalled out as GOP leadership waited for lawmakers who were delayed coming back to Washington and conducted closed-door negotiations with holdouts. By nightfall, as pizzas and other dinners were arriving at the Capitol, the next steps were uncertain. Trump pushes Republicans to do 'the right thing' The bill would extend and make permanent various individual and business tax breaks from Trump's first term, plus temporarily add new ones he promised during the 2024 campaign. This includes allowing workers to deduct tips and overtime pay, and a $6,000 deduction for most older adults earning less than $75,000 a year. In all, the legislation contains about $4.5 trillion in tax cuts over 10 years. The bill also provides about $350 billion for defense and Trump's immigration crackdown. Republicans partially pay for it all through less spending on Medicaid and food assistance. The Congressional Budget Office projects the bill will add about $3.3 trillion to the federal debt over the coming decade. The House passed its version of the bill in May by a single vote, despite worries about spending cuts and the overall price tag. Now it's being asked to give final passage to a version that, in many respects, exacerbates those concerns. The Senate bill's projected impact on the nation's debt, for example, is significantly higher. 'Lets go Republicans and everyone else,' Trump said in a late evening post. The high price of opposing Trump's bill Johnson is intent on meeting Trump's timeline and betting that hesitant Republicans won't cross the president because of the heavy political price they would have to pay. They need only look to Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., who announced his intention to vote against the legislation over the weekend. Soon, the president was calling for a primary challenger to the senator and criticizing him on social media. Tillis quickly announced he would not seek a third term. One House Republican who has staked out opposition to the bill, Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, is being targeted by Trump's well-funded political operation. Democrats target vulnerable Republicans to join them in opposition Flanked by nearly every member of his caucus, Democratic Leader Jeffries of New York delivered a pointed message: With all Democrats voting 'no,' they only need to flip four Republicans to prevent the bill from passing. Jeffries invoked the 'courage' of the late Sen. John McCain giving a thumbs-down to the GOP effort to 'repeal and replace' the Affordable Care Act, and singled out Republicans from districts expected to be highly competitive in 2026, including two from Pennsylvania. 'Why would Rob Bresnahan vote for this bill? Why would Scott Perry vote for this bill?' Jeffries asked. Democrats have described the bill in dire terms, warning that Medicaid cuts would result in lives lost and food stamp cuts would be 'literally ripping the food out of the mouths of children, veterans and seniors,' Jeffries said Monday. Republicans say they are trying to right-size the safety net programs for the population they were initially designed to serve, mainly pregnant women, the disabled and children, and root out what they describe as waste, fraud and abuse. The package includes new 80-hour-a-month work requirements for many adults receiving Medicaid and applies existing work requirements in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, to more beneficiaries. States will also pick up more of the cost for food benefits. The driving force behind the bill, however, is the tax cuts. Many expire at the end of this year if Congress doesn't act. The Tax Policy Center, which provides nonpartisan analysis of tax and budget policy, projected the bill would result next year in a $150 tax break for the lowest quintile of Americans, a $1,750 tax cut for the middle quintile and a $10,950 tax cut for the top quintile. That's compared with what they would face if the 2017 tax cuts expired. ___ Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick and Matt Brown contributed.
Washington Post
14 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Some education grants in limbo were used for ‘leftwing agenda,' Trump administration says
The Trump administration has accused states and schools of using federal education grants earmarked for immigrants' children and low-income students to help fund 'a radical leftwing agenda .' The administration this week withheld more than $6 billion intended for after-school and summer programs, English language instruction, adult literacy and more, saying it would review the grants to ensure they align with President Donald Trump's priorities. The freeze sent schools and summer camp providers scrambling to determine whether they can still provide programs like day camps this summer or after-hours child care this fall.
Yahoo
30 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump's immigration crackdown is hurting sales of America's most popular beer
Modelo and Corona owner Constellation Brands (STZ) is warning about the impact President Trump's immigration crackdown is having on its beer business. Executives said consumer sentiment deteriorated and socioeconomic headwinds increased during its latest quarter amid rising concerns among its core Hispanic consumer base. "Our Hispanic consumer, which reflects roughly half our business ... is very interested in beer," CEO Bill Newlands said on a call with investors. But, Newlands said, "occasions on which beer is consumed have decreased ... [they're] not going out to eat as much as they had, they're having less social occasions at home." Beer shipment volumes fell 3.3% in the quarter, Constellation said Tuesday. The company's Modelo Especial is the bestselling beer in the US. "A lot of Hispanic consumers are apprehensive to leave their house or ... deviate from their routine or go out," Dave Williams of Bump Williams Consulting told Yahoo Finance. "That results in fewer opportunities and occasions where beer would slot into the mix." "The abruptness of this slowdown ... makes me feel like there's a lot more of it tied to the cyclical aspect of these consumer behaviors due to the recent ICE raids or deportation scares, whether you're legal or not ... that's on top of the other structural aspects that beer brands in general," Williams added. The company also highlighted that while "total population and Hispanic unemployment rates remained at similar levels as in the preceding quarter," employment growth for consumers who tend to be its core audience, like construction workers, saw the sector's growth decelerate "noticeably." According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, construction job growth has slowed consistently this year, falling to a rate of 1.5% in May, down from 2.8% a year ago. In Constellation Brands' fiscal first quarter 2026 results, the company saw its volume growth for beer decline 3.3%, a tick more than the 2.4% drop Wall Street expected. Its revenue and adjusted earnings also just missed the Street's expectations, coming in at $2.52 billion and $3.22 per share. The Street was looking for $2.55 billion in revenue and earnings of $3.32 per share. For the fiscal year, the company reiterated that it expects organic net sales growth for its beer category to be in the range of 0%-3% growth; it expects wine and spirits sales to decline 17%-20%. Williams said while Modelo Especial still holds the title of top beer brand in the US, it was "coming up against some size and scale challenges" compared to recent years of growth, especially after taking the top spot from Anheuser-Busch's (BUD) Bud Light two years ago. Constellation stock rose over 4.5% on Wednesday, but shares have tumbled so far this year, down more than 20% as investments weigh potential risks, including the impacts to Hispanic consumers and low-income consumers but also lower consumption of alcohol by younger consumers. An advisory from the Biden administration's Surgeon General earlier this year linking alcohol use to cancer, as well as the potential impacts from GLP-1 drugs and tariffs, have also weighed on sentiment toward the stock, JPMorgan analyst Andrea Teixeira said. Constellation Brands brews most of its beer in Mexico and sells it in the US. It has been compliant with the US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement since it was implemented several years ago. About 39% of its beer is shipped in aluminum cans, which are still subject to a 25% tariff. Brooke DiPalma is a senior reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X at @BrookeDiPalma or email her at bdipalma@ Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
