RALEIGH — The College Democrats of North Carolina are leading a lawsuit over the State Board of Elections removal of on-campus early voting sites at three of the state’s college campuses.
The complaint, filed for the plaintiffs by Patterson Harkavy LLP attorney Narendra K. Ghosh and attorneys with the Elias Law Group, seeks a preliminary injunction. The Elias Law Group is run by former Hillary Clinton presidential campaign attorney Marc Elias.
At its meeting last month, the board voted 3-2 down party lines to cut certain early in-person voting sites from three schools: North Carolina A&T, UNC Greensboro and Western Carolina.
Students attended the meeting to protest, and social media posts by “Influence NC” promoted busing options for students at NC A&T to attend the meeting. Influence NC did not respond to North State Journal’s inquiry about whether they funded the buses directly.
The lawsuit claims the removal of polling locations is unconstitutional in that it restricts the right to vote based on age. The filing alleges the closures violate the First and 14th amendments, as well as the 26th Amendment.
In addition to the College Democrats of North Carolina as plaintiffs are four individual students: Zayveon Davis, Zach Powell, Rose Daphne Yard and Raquel Nelson.
The State Board of Elections (NCSBE) is the primary named defendant, along with the elections boards in Guilford and Jackson counties.
The lawsuit also contends the closures “intentionally target the rights of young voters,” as well as impacting black voters.
“At WCU, the on-campus early voting site has served the highest proportion of same-day registrants of any site in all of North Carolina — a clear indicator of young, first-time voters exercising their rights,” the lawsuit states. “In 2024, it served the second youngest average pool of voters of any site in the state and more Black voters than every other Jackson County site.”
The lawsuit also cites “harm” to students by having to travel to nearby existing polling sites.
North State Journal reached out to the NCSBE, and a spokesperson indicated the board had no comment on the lawsuit at this time. However, the NCSBE did file a memorandum in opposition to the suit Feb. 4, asserting the plaintiffs are unlikely to succeed on any of their claims and requesting the court deny the motion.
The NCSBE’s memorandum notes the 2026 election cycle is already underway, and the College Democrats lack standing as an organization unable to vote.
During a brief hearing on the afternoon of Feb. 5, U.S. District Judge William L. Osteen questioned the plaintiff attorneys about the feasibility of putting a polling site with such short notice on the campuses in question.
Osteen issued an order on Monday Feb. 8 refusing the plaintiffs’ injunction request. Seven days later, the College Democrats filed a motion for voluntary dismissal.
This article has been updated to reflect a Plaintiff motion for dismissal of the case.
