Democratic groups made efforts to prevent the North Carolina Green Party from getting on the ballot, according to statements from Green Party and Libertarian Senate candidates and election experts.
The North Carolina State Board of Elections voted across party lines 3-2 with the Democrats to not certify the Green Party, according to The News & Observer.
Days before the Green Party was denied ballot access by the Board of Elections, an influential Democrat-aligned law firm, The Elias Group, filed several complaints to the Board of Elections asking that hundreds of signatures from the Green Party’s ballot access petition to be invalidated, The News & Observer reported. Marc Elias, the firm’s founder, served as general counsel for both John Kerry and Hillary Clinton, the outlet noted.
The Elias Group sent a letter to the Board of Elections on June 28 stating that the Green party tried to “obfuscate the purpose and intent of their party” by providing general guidelines on how to properly ask for signatures, WFAE reported.
The Green Party also wrote a letter addressed to the Board of Elections accusing the Democrats of misleading voters. Green Party Senate candidate Matthew Hoh wrote in the letter that “at least 20 voters who signed North Carolina Green Party (“NCGP”) petitions have reported that they received calls, text messages and in-person visits to their homes by people aggressively attempting to compel them to remove their signature from our petitions,” according to WFAE.
Hoh also shared text messages on his Twitter that appear to show contact between an organization trying to confirm petition signatures, later revealing itself to be The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. (RELATED: Democrats Force Biden’s Left-Wing Regulator Picks To Senate Floor)
I just received this text. This is @dscc attempting to subvert @NorthCarolinaGP’s successful petitioning for ballot access. They are proving that Dems nor GOP care for democracy, only maintaining power. Please help us fight back: https://t.co/rwj2t8risJ
Please RT.#ncpol pic.twitter.com/AZDZUypkap— Matthew Hoh for Senate (@MatthewPHoh) June 25, 2022
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee did not respond to the Daily Caller’s request for comment.
An audio recording published by the Carolina Journal allegedly captures a call between Green Party co-chair Tony Ndedge and a caller claiming to be a Green Party representative, according to WFAE. The recording appears to capture the caller confirming they represent the Green Party and asking Ndedge to remove his name from the list. “If you’re with the Green Party, why are you asking to remove?” Ndedge asked, referring to the signature, before the caller hung up.
Below is a recording where an alleged Democratic operative poses as a Green Party volunteer and asks them to remove their name from the petition for Green Party ballot recognition. @DavidLarson83 #ncpol pic.twitter.com/sqiW4wweLx
— Carolina Journal (@CarolinaJournal) July 1, 2022
A video published by The News & Observer appears to show a woman, who identifies herself a member of the North Carolina Democrats, asking a Raleigh resident if he would be “interested in removing their name from the petition,” according to the outlet.
Mitch Kokai, a senior political analyst at the John Locke Foundation, told the Daily Caller that “Marc Elias and his associates are part of a Democratic electoral operation that spends a lot of time filing lawsuits to block Republican voting maps and election integrity measures. They allege, with little to no credible evidence, that Republicans are taking steps that block the electoral will of the people. Meanwhile, Marc Elias, his operatives, and the Democratic electoral machine are actively working themselves to block the electoral will of the people. And the tactics are downright despicable.”
“They fear the Green Party offers a preferable alternative to too many people who otherwise vote Democrat by default. Allowing the Green Party to have access to the ballot would hurt Democrats’ ability to win votes from lukewarm supporters,” Kokai stated.
Libertarian Senate candidate Shannon Bray told the Daily Caller that “The rules are stacked against the independent thinkers and the general public doesn’t understand how difficult it is to create real change. I hope more people learn about the activity that is happening behind the scenes by the duopoly that is in power.”
The Elias Group did not respond to the Daily Caller’s request for comment.