LUMBERTON — Nominees for a new State Board of Elections have been forwarded to Gov. Roy Cooper and a former board member from Pembroke who argued to stop the certification of the District 9 congressional race is not among them.
Joshua Malcolm, chairman of the previous board, lawyer and a Democrat, told the Charlotte Observer on Thursday he decided it was best for the board and for him that he not serve. Malcolm was vice chairman in November when he made the motion not to certify the results from the 9th District congressional race, citing allegations of absentee ballot irregularities.
When contacted Thursday by The Robesonian, Malcolm declined to answer questions.
But he did say: “Some things are bigger than self. Public confidence in the elections oversight and/or processes are bigger than any single person or any ambition they may have. I remain hopeful that coming weeks will show the citizens of this nation/state just that, through the actions and through the yet to be announced hearing of the newly constituted N.C. Board of Elections.”
Cooper is to seat a new elections board on Thursday. He will have four Democrats and four Republicans to chose from for a board that will be comprised of three Democrats and two Republicans.
State lawmakers passed a law creating the five-member board. It replaces a nine-member board that was struck down by a court in late December as unconstitutional.
It will be up to the new board to certify the results of the District 9 race between Republican Mark Harris and Democrat Dan McCready or call for a new election. The new board also will decide what will happen with the Robeson County District Court judicial race between Jack Moody and Vanessa Burton that remains uncertified.
“That former board members who have direct or indirect ties to the candidates involved in the investigation in the 9th District, would have been problematic to questions of independency and transparency to the investigation. A fresh board is needed,” said Bo Biggs, a Robeson County political observer and former member of the county Board of Elections.
Malcolm has been criticized by North Carolina Republicans for failure to disclose his wife’s campaign donations to Cooper, his daughter’s federal work for the N.C. Democratic Party, and his frequent communication with Jens Lutz, who was vice chairman of the Bladen County Board of Elections before he resigned that position.
The allegations of absentee ballot irregularities arose in Bladen County.
“Any board member directly or indirectly tied to a candidate in the 9th District investigation would have been problematic to questions of independency and transparency. A fresh board is needed,” said Phillip Stephens, Robeson County Republican Party chairman.
The Democrats’ list of nominees for the new state board includes former members of the previous nine-member board in Stella Anderson, Bob Cordle and Valerie Johnson. Also nominated was former Wake County elections board member Greg Flynn.
Republicans nominated previous board member Stacy “Four” Eggers IV, and Eldon “Buck” Newton III, Francis De Luca and Eddie Woodhouse. Woodhouse also previously served on the Wake County board. Newton was the Republicans’ 2016 nominee for attorney general. De Luca once led the conservative-leaning Civitas Institute in Raleigh.
Cooper is reviewing the nominees and their eligibility, said Ford Porter, a spokesman for the governor.
Malcolm became chairman of the state Board of Elections after Chairman Andy Penry had to resign for unacceptable partisan public behavior in violation of Elections Board rules. Penry’s resignation came within days of the board voting not to certify the District 9 election results.
“Our message today is simple: Appoint fair and honest people to the Board of Elections. If Cooper decides to nominate a third ethically challenged chair, we will again expose them and hold Cooper accountable,” said Robin Hayes, chairman of the state Republican Party.
