Cooper Vetoes two Election-Related Bills; NCGA Leaders say Governor's Actions Disrupt Judicial Filing | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's note: This post was created by the staff of the Carolina Journal, John Hood Publisher.

    [Editor's note: Updated to include comments on Twitter by Rep. David Lewis.]

    Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed a pair of bills Friday that tweak state election laws and judicial election districts. Cooper's office announced the vetoes after 9 p.m. Friday.

    He issued the vetoes after a rare Friday business session at the General Assembly. Republican leaders said earlier this week they planned to wrap up all public bills before the weekend, leaving only local bills, constitutional amendments, and potential veto overrides before adjourning sine die.

    The Senate acted on 34 bills and the House took up 52. The activity was broken up by several long recesses, which House Speaker Tim Moore, R-Cleveland, explained around 5 p.m. He noted Cooper had until midnight Friday to veto Senate Bills 486 and 757, and - because the measures deal with judicial elections and filing for those races opens Monday - leaders hoped the governor would act before lawmakers left town.

    Instead, Cooper waited until lawmakers adjourned. On Twitter, House Rules Committee Chairman David Lewis, R-Harnett, rebuked the Democratic governor, saying Cooper had the veto message delivered to the home of the Senate clerk late Friday night. (Lewis later clarified the tweet.) The lawmaker also vowed the General Assembly would override the vetoes Tuesday, the next day both chambers are expected to schedule votes.

    In rejecting Senate Bill 486, Cooper said in a news release, "Continued election meddling for partisan advantage weakens public confidence. Judges' races should be free of partisan labels."

    As its official title indicates, S.B. 486 makes "various changes related to election laws." It requires criminal record checks for employees and contractors of the State Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcement, along with county elections staff. It sets the location for judicial races on the election ballot. It sets rules for judicial action related to state elections board decisions. It includes a "sore loser" provision that blocks a primary election loser from running for the same office in the same year for a new political party. It makes technical changes to the structure of the recently merged state elections and ethics oversight board.

    The N.C. House approved the measure, 66-44, and the Senate approved it, 30-12. To override Cooper's veto, both chambers would need to secure support from at least 60 percent of the members present and voting.

    The House vote matched that 60 percent threshold exactly. If all 120 members are present for a veto override vote, the House would need support from six more members to secure an override. Three Republicans voted against the measure, and no Democrats supported it. GOP leaders would need support from every other Republican in a party-line vote.

    Seventy-one percent of voting senators endorsed the measure.

    Cooper also vetoed Senate Bill 757. "The legislative attempts to rig the courts by reducing the people's vote hurts justice," the governor said in his news release. "Piecemeal attempts to target judges create unnecessary confusion and show contempt for North Carolina's judiciary."

    S.B. 757 changes district lines for some Superior Court, District Court, and district attorney elections. It's a scaled-back version of an earlier proposal to redraw judicial election districts across North Carolina.

    The House approved the measure, 70-45 (61 percent), and the Senate approved it, 28-14 (67 percent).

    Cooper's latest vetoes represent his second and third of the year. Lawmakers voted to override an earlier veto of the state budget bill. The governor has vetoed 16 bills overall since taking office in 2017. Lawmakers have voted to override 11 of those vetoes.