NC Voter Turnout Is Big, Moral Monday Still Claims Voter Suppression

The NC Primary Turnout was big this year, but the Moral Monday crowd still is screaming voter suppression.

2016 Turnout: 35% (2,300,955 out of 6,511,143)
2016 Turnout: 35% (2,182,675 out of 6,296,759)

Snippet from the long and rather error riddled NCNAACP press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 16, 2016

CONTACT: Victoria Wenger—Advancement Project at vwenger@advancementproject.org, or 603-686-1647
John Stean—Media & Communications Coordinator, NC NAACP at john.stean@naacpnc.org, or 516-965-4875

Long Lines, Confusion in North Carolina Show Impact of Voter Suppression Law
Early Voting Lines Lasted Hours, Election Day Hotline Flooded With Calls

RALEIGH – Yesterday, and during a condensed early voting period, voters attempting to participate in this year’s North Carolina primary election confronted long lines and confusion at the polls. While early turnout surpassed recent records, voters had fewer days to cast a ballot due to the elimination of a week of early voting under the state’s monster voter suppression law, H.B. 589. At congested polling sites, voters in Wake County confronted lines lasting hours as they waited to cast a ballot within the shortened period. Yesterday, voters at the First Alliance Church in Winston-Salem stood in lines over 1 hour and 45 mins. Durham voters at the Ivy Community Center waited in lines stretching the length of the exterior.

Every single tweet and news report I saw showed no long lines and no congestion. Kind of like this one:

The two churches in question above are known Moral Monday hubs. I wouldn’t put it past the NC NAACP to have urged voters to wait to the last minute and flood those sites. That’s how they roll.

Despite the shortened number of days, the amount of hours for early voting are the same. Everyone had an opportunity to miss potential long lines had they taken advantage of early voting.

Here’s the hilarious part of the press release:

“We are seeing in North Carolina the exact type of electoral chaos that happens when politicians manipulate the voting system for their own gain,” said Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, president of the North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP. “Our leaders should be in the business of making it easier to vote, not harder. The right to vote should be constitutional, not confusing.”

Electoral chaos?

Oh, you mean like throwing our primary into chaos with am NC NAACP tied lawsuit that forced districts to be redrawn?

The kind of chaos like voter disenfranchisement of early voting and absentee ballots that stems from that map redrawing?

That kind of chaos?  My God. THE STUPID. 

Ultimate Insult

About A.P. Dillon

A.P. Dillon is a reporter currently writing at The North State Journal. She resides in the Triangle area of North Carolina. Find her on Twitter: @APDillon_ Tips: APDillon@Protonmail.com
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