N.C. board declares a new election in contested House race

Source: Washington Post

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The North Carolina State Board of Elections on Thursday ordered a new election in the 9th Congressional District, ending a dramatic, months-long investigation into allegations of widespread ballot tampering.

"It appears to me the irregularities and improprioties occurred to such an extent that they tainted the results of the entire election and cast doubt on its fairness," said the board chairman, Bob Cordle, shortly before the five-member panel voted unanimously to throw out the November results between Republican Mark Harris and Democrat Dan McCready. "I believe the people of North Carolina deserve a fair election and deserve to have their votes counted properly."

The board's vote came moments after Harris admitted that he had misspoken under oath earlier in the day. Harris said he is recovering from a serious infection that led to sepsis and two strokes, which in turn affected his memory. The episode made him realize, he testified, that he was not prepared for the "rigors" of the evidentiary hearing. He called for a new election, then promptedly excused himself from the proceeding. "I believe a new election should be called," Harris said, eliciting gasps from the hearing room in Raleigh. "It's become clear to me that public confidence in the 9th District has been undermined to an extent that a new election is warranted."

Harris's testimony came the day after his son, John Harris, a federal prosecutor, testified that he warned his father in phone calls and emails that he believed a political operative named Leslie McCrae Dowless had broken the law in a previous election and should not be hired for the 2018 campaign. Mark Harris hired Dowless anyway.

Snip.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/candidate-says-new-congressional-election-warranted-in-north-carolina/2019/02/21/acae4482-35e0-11e9-854a-7a14d7fec96a_story.html

Full new headline: N.C. board declares a new election in contested House race after the GOP candidate admitted misspeaking under oath

WaPo's banner on their website - "N.C. board declares a new election in contested House race after the GOP candidate admitted misspeaking under oath"

UPDATE coming in. Original story -

Candidate says new congressional election warranted in North Carolina

By Amy Gardner
February 21 at 4:00 PM

BREAKING NEWS: Mark Harris, during testimony this afternoon to the North Carolina State Board of Elections, said a new election was warranted in the hotly contested race, which Harris led by 905 votes. Earlier Thursday, Harris said he knew nothing of an alleged ballot-tampering scheme led by an operative he hired to work in his 2018 campaign.

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/candidate-says-new-congressional-election-warranted-in-north-carolina/2019/02/21/acae4482-35e0-11e9-854a-7a14d7fec96a_story.html