Gov. Cooper signs bill that combats absentee ballot tampering

RALEIGH, N.C. (WECT) - Governor Roy Cooper on Wednesday signed a bill into law designed to crack down on absentee ballot tampering in state and location elections.

The North Carolina General Assembly overwhelmingly passed the bill last month which directly addresses last year’s 9th congressional district race, which caused Bladen County to hold new elections after the state board found evidence of election fraud.

This measure increases criminal penalties for anyone who attempts to sell or destroy absentee ballots.

Most of the bill looks to combat illegal ballot harvesting and outlines the felony criminal penalties for doing so.

Evidence of ballot tampering and other alleged fraud came to light in the 2018 campaign for that 9th district seat, where McCrae Dowless and others face criminal charges for allegedly mishandling mail-in absentee ballots.

The bill also permanently restores early, in-person voting on the last Saturday before state elections.

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