Raleigh, N.C. – On Tuesday the state General Assembly conformed the filing rules for judicial races with those for every other public office in North Carolina, clarifying candidates who switch their party registration within 90 days of filing may not appear on the ballot as members of either their previous or newly affiliated party.
Senate Bill 3 Party Disclosure/2018 Judicial Races would apply to all judicial races and prevent political gamesmanship from confusing voters in the November elections. At least one long-time Democrat switched his party affiliation to Republican just days prior to filing for judicial office in the last available hours.
The Charlotte Observer editorial board described the move as “trying to pull a fast one on North Carolina voters” and declared “we think that’s wrong.”
State House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland) released a statement:
“The filing rules for judicial races should be consistent with all other public offices in North Carolina to prevent long-time party affiliates from switching their registration and filing in the last available hours to purposefully misinform voters,” Moore said.