League of Women Voters Asheville - Buncombe County, NC

“The People vs Griffin” rally on Feb. 17, 2025, in Asheville, N.C. Photo: WLOS Staff

Statewide protests happening against GOP attempt to overturn
NC Supreme Court results

By Madison Smith, Asheville Citizen Times, February 17, 2025

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — Across the state, over a dozen rallies are taking place in protest of the alleged attempt to overturn an election for a justice in the Supreme Court of North Carolina.

The rallies are being called “The People v. Griffin” and are held in favor of winning Democratic candidate Justice Allison Riggs.

Incumbent Allison Riggs was appointed to serve on the North Carolina Supreme Court in September 2023 and ran for a full term in 2024.

Riggs won her race against Republican candidate Jefferson Griffin in November 2024. Since then, Griffin has attempted to get her win overturned. Verified by multiple recounts, Riggs had a 734-vote lead over Griffin.

The latest attempt by Griffin is claiming the state broke election law by not requiring ID for military, early and overseas voters, which would throw out over 60,000 votes statewide. That includes 2,500 votes in Buncombe County and more than 300 votes in Henderson County.

Voters at the Asheville “People vs Griffin” protest, like Cathy Walsh with Common Cause NC, say this is a waste of time and money.

“We are protesting that he is holding this up,” Walsh said. “It has cost thousands of dollars for each of the 100 counties in the state, the number of hours that have been wasted, it’s just disgraceful.”

On Feb. 7, a Wake County judge ruled against Griffin’s attempt to throw out these ballots, backing the previous decision from the North Carolina State Board of Elections.

Members of Griffin’s team have said they plan to appeal this decision, even after Griffin lost two recounts and multiple cases.

Read the article on the Asheville Citizen Times website.

The League of Women Voters of Asheville-Buncombe County co-sponsored the Asheville rally and were there to register voters.

Is your vote being challenged?

Use to this online search tool to see if your name is among the 60,000 voters whose ballots are being challenged.

Don’t let Congress make voting harder!

The House and Senate introduced the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which would require citizenship documentation to register to vote despite the fact that voters in every state are already required to affirm or verify their citizenship status when registering.

It is already illegal for non-citizens to register and vote in federal or state elections. Additionally, we have processes to ensure our elections are secure and that only eligible voters are casting ballots. State election officials have systems to verify an individual voter’s eligibility and ensure voter rolls are accurate.

The bill’s requirement of a document to prove American citizenship to register to vote in federal elections is unnecessary and seeks to divide us. Further, it creates one more barrier to the voting process, as many eligible voters do not have easy access to the necessary documents. Compared to white US citizens, citizens of color are three times more likely to lack documents such as birth certificates, passports, naturalization certificates, or certificates of citizenship or face difficulties accessing them. For example, while approximately half of all American adults possess a passport, two-thirds of Black Americans do not.

Legislation like the SAVE Act is another in a long list of tactics, like strict voter photo ID requirements and limitations on voter assistance in languages other than English, which seek to make it more difficult for voters of color and naturalized citizens to vote. Americans do not need MORE obstacles to vote.

Congress must act to ensure that every eligible US citizen has the freedom to vote unimpeded by discriminatory rules rooted in fear and division.

Click here to tell your members of Congress to vote NO on the Save Act

Oath of the League of Women Voters

We do solemnly swear that we will empower voters and defend our democracy and we will faithfully execute our civic responsibility as nonpartisan advocates. We do this fearlessly, reflectively, and collectively. We act from a place of hope and collective power. We affirm that we will work to provide democracy education and election administration support, restore and defend voting rights protections, abolish the Electoral College, protect democracy organizations, and fight for reproductive freedoms. We will not be deterred from these tasks. Join us to protect life, liberty, freedom, and justice.

About the League

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan, volunteer-based, political organization consisting of women and men passionate about our democracy. Born out of the national women’s suffrage movement in 1920, the League continues to work to serve the needs of the voting public and protect the rights of all voters.

Our efforts are two-fold:
Voters Service, Citizen Education – presenting unbiased, nonpartisan information about elections, the voting process and current issues.

Action, Advocacy – following education on the issue(s), action is taken towards enacting policies in the public interest and striking down policies harmful to society.

A just society is derived from a democracy consisting of an engaged and educated public that has faith in the political process.