NC candidates are challenging decisions on ballots. Here’s how the protests work.

Updated on Nov. 20, 2020 with the latest developments.

North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Cheri Beasley has demanded a statewide recount on her race as a narrow lead of 406 votes for Republican Justice Paul Newby has him poised to replace her on the court. One of the reasons the Democrat demanded a recount: Her campaign says thousands of absentee and provisional ballots were wrongfully disqualified from the count.

Since Tuesday, Beasley has filed 89 election protests in counties including Mecklenburg, Wake and most recently in Transylvania. In a unanimous decision, the Mecklenburg County Board of Elections dismissed the chief justice’s protest, filed on Wednesday, the elections board confirmed. Newby’s protest was also dismissed.

But what exactly does it mean to challenge or protest an election result?

If the apparent results of an election are questioned due to a problem in the counting of all successfully cast ballots, a candidate or a registered voter eligible to vote in the election can file for an election protest, which will challenge the ballots affected by the alleged miscount and could change the results of the election.

An election protest must be filed in writing with the corresponding county board of elections. The deadline to submit a protest form differs based on the grounds behind the protest or challenge.

If it’s protesting the manner in which votes were counted, the protest must be filed before the beginning of the county board of election’s canvass meeting, which this year was Nov. 13. If the protest states good cause for delay in filing the form, it may be filed by 5 p.m. on the second business day after the county canvass has been completed and declared the results.

If it’s protesting an irregularity other than the method of counting and reporting results, the form must be filed by 5 p.m. on the second business day after the county canvass has been completed and declared the results.

If the protest form is filed after the deadline, the State Board of Elections has authority to consider it, although it is not required, according to state guidance.

Given the narrow lead in the chief justice race, Beasley’s protests of 2,000 votes being rejected could flip the race in her favor. Like Beasley, Newby also filed various protests across the state last week making similar allegations, although they have all been dismissed by the various counties’ boards of elections.

By Thursday morning, Newby had filed five more protests regarding the votes cast by those who died before Nov. 3 after submitting their ballots in Orange, Wake, Mecklenburg, Guilford and Durham counties.

Beasley’s protests will be considered by the counties, as directed by State Board of Elections guidance. In Forsyth County, the board of elections planned to meet Thursday to consider Beasley’s protest as well as one filed Tuesday by a resident, Stefanie Pettit Draper, who says at least 19 votes cast by people who died between casting their ballot and Election Day were still accepted and counted in the chief justice election. Both protests were dismissed, The Winston-Salem Journal reported.

If a board agrees the protests demonstrate some truthfulness as to the possibility of a mistake, it will move forward to a protest hearing, in which all evidence, including affidavits and any witness testimony, will be analyzed to determine if voting irregularities occurred and if those changed the results.

Any person who is affected by the decision and who participated in the hearing can appeal the county elections board decision to the State Board of Elections , whose decision can also be appealed to the Superior Court in Wake County.

The appealing party must give the county board of elections written notice of the intent to appeal within 24 hours of the decision being made, according to state rules. If the appeal form concerns a primary election, it must be delivered in person or deposited in the mail by the end of the second day after the county elections board issued a written decision. If it concerns any other election, the appeal must be delivered or deposited in the mail by the end of the fifth day after the written decision.

This story was originally published November 19, 2020 at 2:46 PM with the headline "NC candidates are challenging decisions on ballots. Here’s how the protests work.."