STATE UPDATE: NORTH CAROLINA - Board of Elections plans to use SAVE database through rules change, not law

[lostnfound]

(Thanks to Markodochartaigh who suggested this topic was worth a separate thread from the other one on SAVE act monsters.)

STATE UPDATE: NORTH CAROLINA - Board of Elections plans to use SAVE database through rules change, not law
https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/election/article314981701.html

As North Carolina election officials consider partnering with the Trump administration to remove alleged noncitizens from the voter rolls, attendees at a public hearing on Monday railed against the proposal, saying it was likely to disenfranchise eligible voters.
…
Monday’s hearing revolved around new proposed rules that would allow the State Board of Elections to identify “presumptive noncitizens” based on reviews of government databases, like the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements, or SAVE system, housed within the Department of Homeland Security. The board is currently negotiating a deal with DHS to feed potentially millions of voters at a time into the SAVE system in search of noncitizens. Several speakers at Monday’s hearing noted that SAVE was not designed for this purpose and has historically only been used to confirm eligibility for government benefits.
…
If the rules were to be approved, the state would flag “presumptive noncitizens” for county election boards, which would be required to review local records to see if those voters ever provided documentation of citizenship. If not, the county board would challenge the voter’s eligibility and hold a formal hearing in which the voter would be invited to provide proof of citizenship. Irene Grimes, a Democratic member of the Cumberland County Board of Elections, said at Monday’s hearing that this setup treated voters as guilty until proven innocent. “Instead of presuming that voters are eligible, these rules risk treating them as suspect first and forcing them to prove their innocence later, often at significant personal cost in time, money and stress,” she said.

Read more at: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/election/article314981701.html#storylink=cpy

The article mentions one representative from a conservative think tank admitting that 5 days notice to attend a hearing is probably not enough time.and should be lengthened to 10 days.

For those who are unaware: The NC governor is a Democrat (Josh Stein, good guy) but the damn state legislature (gerrymandered, heavily red) finagled a way to get total control of elections back in their hands. https://www.charlotteobserver.com/opinion/article314981342.html
For nearly 10 years, Republican lawmakers fought to take away election appointment power away from Democratic governors. In 2024, they finally succeeded, passing a bill that wrested control of election administration from the newly elected governor (a Democrat) and placed it in the hands of the newly elected state auditor (a Republican). North Carolina is the only state in the country where the auditor oversees election administration. Now, the State Board of Elections has a Republican majority, as do the elections boards in all 100 counties.

Read more at: https://www.charlotteobserver.com/opinion/article314981342.html#storylink=cpy

[Raven123]

1. Line up the law suits