North Carolina Republicans enact voting, election boards changes over Democratic governor’s vetoes

By GARY D. ROBERTSON
Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Republicans have enacted vote-count restrictions and weakened the governor’s ability to oversee elections and other state regulatory bodies by overriding Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s vetoes. Narrow GOP supermajorities in the General Assembly overturned five vetoes Tuesday. Two new laws address elections and voting in the ninth-largest state, which is a likely presidential battleground next year. Lawsuits attempting to block some of the new laws are anticipated. One law eliminates the governor’s power to appoint the State Board of Elections and gives it to legislative leaders. The other ends the three-day grace period to receive and count absentee ballots as long as they are postmarked by Election Day.