When Democrats assume the House majority on Jan. 3, the chamber won’t seat a North Carolina Republican who claimed victory after a tight race but whose campaign is now under investigation for potential election fraud.
Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., the incoming House majority leader, told Charlotte television station WSOC on Friday that ongoing probes into election fraud need to continue before a winner can be certified.
“Given the now well-documented election fraud that took place in NC09 Democrats would object to any attempt by Mr. [Mark] Harris to be seated on Jan. 3,” Hoyer said. “In this instance, the integrity of our democratic process outweighs concerns about the seat being vacant at the start of the new Congress.”
The move comes after North Carolina earlier Friday dissolved its elections board. That means the new Congress will open up next Thursday without a certified winner for North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District, in the south-central part of the state.
Initial voting tallies after Election Night put Harris 905 votes ahead of his Democratic rival, Dan McCready. Though McCready conceded the race, state Democratic officials raised questions over election integrity with the state’s election board — including the Harris campaign’s use of independent contractors to collect absentee ballots. The elections board then opened a probe into the activities of McCrae Dowless, a freelance political operator working for the Harris campaign who critics contend paid workers to illegally collect absentee ballots from voters.
A new elections board likely won’t be appointed by Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, until the end of January. That leaves the future of the 9th District seat uncertain.
The House ultimately has discretion whether to seat — or not seat — potential members. The chamber, though, hasn’t left a seat open from opening day on since 1985. In that case, it took four months to resolve a dispute in Indiana’s 8th District, with the then-Democratic majority voting to seat its candidate, over vociferous complaints from Republican lawmakers.
