NC Dems Sue Over Power Grab By GOP Lawmakers

The Associated Press reports:

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and Gov.-elect Josh Stein [photo] on Thursday challenged the constitutionality of a portion of a law enacted just a day earlier by the Republican-dominated General Assembly that erodes Stein’s powers and those of other top Democrats elected to statewide office last month.

The full law was given final approval Wednesday with a successful House override vote of Cooper’s veto. It also shifts in May the appointment powers of the State Board of Elections from the governor to the state auditor – who next month will be a Republican.

The powers of the governor to fill vacancies on the state Supreme Court and Court of Appeals also were weakened. And the attorney general – next to be Democrat Jeff Jackson – will be prevented from taking legal positions contrary to the General Assembly in litigation challenging a law’s validity.

Read the full article.

Today, Governor Cooper and I have taken legal action to stop the legislature’s unconstitutional and dangerous power grab. This law threatens public safety, fractures the chain of command during a crisis, and thwarts the will of voters. Our people deserve better than a…

— Josh Stein (@JoshStein_) December 13, 2024

Gov. Cooper and Gov.-elect Stein have filed lawsuit over #SB382 in Wake County Superior Court. #ncpol

Full complaint here–> https://t.co/jf4LdqHJ0U pic.twitter.com/coyYkbRurF

— Bryan Anderson (@BryanRAnderson) December 12, 2024