Group also targeting early voting, same-day registration

In meetings over the past two months, members of the NCEIT discussed further election law changes but appeared less optimistic about getting some of them through the Senate.

The group frequently discussed shortening the in-person early voting period, which currently begins on the third Thursday before an election and ends on the last Saturday before an election.

House Speaker Tim Moore has expressed support for reducing the early voting period in the past, telling reporters in February that “I like early voting. I like making it easier to vote, but I think it’s just too long at three weeks. It adds a lot of costs.”

However, Womack told the group that the chairs of the Senate Elections Committee “have basically stated that there’s not much interest in doing anything on the Senate side this year.”

Sen. Paul Newton, one of the committee chairs, did not respond to a request for comment.

In a meeting on April 9, Womack said one of the group’s priorities is eliminating same-day registration. Voters in North Carolina can register while voting in-person during the early voting period. Absent action from the legislature, he said Mitchell was interested in filing a lawsuit targeting the practice.

“If the General Assembly does not want to stop it through statutory means, then we need to go through the lawfare channel,” Womack said.

The legislative session begins on Wednesday.

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