In a painful loss for Republicans, Judge Jefferson Griffin concedes in North Carolina, ending his attempts to challenge a controversial state Supreme Court election.
See the tweet below!
The legal battle spanned over six months following the November 2024 election.
Republican Judge Jefferson Griffin finally conceded the North Carolina state Supreme Court election to Democrat Justice Allison Riggs after contesting the results for over six months.
The decision marked the end of a prolonged legal struggle, concluding in the hands of Judge Richard E. Myers II, a federal judge appointed by President Donald Trump.
Myers rejected Griffin’s legal challenges, which sought to invalidate tens of thousands of votes based on claims of irregularities.
The concession is a significant turn for the Democrats, who now have an eight-year term for Riggs on a GOP-majority led court.
Despite trailing Justice Riggs by only 734 votes even after two recounts, Griffin decided not to appeal the court’s decision.
“I will not appeal the court’s decision,” Griffin stated, respecting the outcome while expressing his disagreement with the court’s analysis.
His decision not to appeal raises concerns about the Democrats’ growing influence in North Carolina, The Guardian reports.
A deeper dive into the decision rendered by Judge Myers highlighted due process concerns tied to retroactive changes in election procedures—changes Griffin argued unfairly swayed the election.
This move was seen as a decisive victory for the Democrats, giving them hope for regaining the majority on the seven-justice court by 2028.
Myers’ assessment said, “retroactive changes to election procedures raise serious due process concerns, particularly where those changes result in invalidating the votes of individuals who cast ballots in reliance on previously established rules.”
Critics of Griffin’s legal ventures noted that his attempts could indeed set precedents for other candidates to contest results with dubious credibility.
The Democrat National Committee celebrated this outcome, labeling it a victory for democracy while condemning what they refer to as political gamesmanship.
Justice Riggs, during the prolonged court battle, spent nearly $100,000 on legal fees to maintain her ground.
The North Carolina Supreme Court race stood out as the final uncalled contest of the 2024 election cycle, with Griffin pressing to discard approximately 65,000 votes on technical grounds.
These included missing driver’s license numbers, social security digits, and votes by those living abroad.
With the Associated Press already having declared winners in over 4,400 races, the controversy surrounding this election underscored the fierce battles on state judicial benches.
This outcome should encourage conservatives to remain vigilant and proactive, particularly in battleground states like North Carolina, where the political climate is always at a tipping point.
BREAKING: Republican challenger Jefferson Griffin concedes the North Carolina Supreme Court race to Democratic incumbent Allison Riggs, ending his six-month legal battle to overturn the election. https://t.co/qzt7KLJ0Jg
— Democracy Docket (@DemocracyDocket) May 7, 2025
