A federal appeals court blocked North Carolina from beginning ballot curing as part of Republican candidate Jefferson Griffin’s effort to overturn the results of the state’s 2024 Supreme Court race.
A three-judge panel of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals voted Tuesday 2-1 to order the state not to mail any notices to the roughly 1,400 voters whose ballots are included in the state’s cure process while litigation over Democrat Allison Riggs’ narrow victory continues in federal court.
Judges Toby Heytens and Paul Niemeyer — who were appointed by former Presidents Joe Biden and George H. W. Bush, respectively — approved the halt, while Trump-appointee Judge Marvin Quattlebaum dissented.
The panel’s order came after Riggs’ campaign had asked the court to put the cure process on hold.
North Carolina state courts ruled earlier this month that the ballots at issue needed to be cured by voters to avoid being rejected — a move that could potentially disenfranchise thousands of voters.
Since then, the state has filed court documents putting the number of ballots facing legitimate challenges at a far lower level, saying many of Griffin’s challenges missed a key deadline.