Summary: Justice Riggs Declared Winner After Months-Long NC Supreme Court Election Fight
On May 5, a federal judge ordered the State Board of Elections to certify the original vote total.
Note: Related source documents can be found here.
Holly Springs, May 8, 2025 — After more than six months of recounts, legal challenges, and courtroom disputes, Justice Allison Riggs has been officially declared the winner of the 2024 race for Seat 6 on the North Carolina Supreme Court. Her Republican challenger, Judge Jefferson Griffin, conceded on May 7, ending one of the closest and most contested statewide elections in North Carolina’s history.
The election was held on November 5, 2024. According to the certified final results, Riggs received 2,770,412 votes, while Griffin received 2,769,678 votes — a difference of just 734 votes, or 0.0132%. Following the certification of results after a recount, Griffin launched a multi-pronged legal challenge seeking to disqualify tens of thousands of ballots.
Griffin filed formal protests with the State Board of Elections, challenging three main categories of ballots: voters who allegedly had incomplete registration information, absentee ballots from overseas and military voters lacking proper ID, and ballots cast by “Never Residents”—individuals who had never lived in North Carolina but voted based on a parent’s residency.
Griffin’s campaign mailed notices to affected voters with a QR code linking to the protest filings. However, the Board of Elections dismissed all three protests, citing improper notice and a lack of probable cause.
Griffin appealed to the Wake County Superior Court, which upheld the Board’s dismissal. He then took the matter to the North Carolina Court of Appeals, which ruled in his favor on April 4, stating that the protests did meet legal thresholds and certain ballots should be excluded. A week later, the North Carolina Supreme Court reversed most of that ruling, reinstating nearly all ballots except for a small group of overseas ballots and votes from “Never Residents.”
The case then shifted to federal court. On May 5, a federal judge ordered the State Board of Elections to certify the original vote total. The ruling stated that applying new ballot requirements retroactively and denying voters a chance to fix issues violated the Constitution’s guarantees of equal protection and due process.
Two days later, Judge Griffin conceded the race in a public statement.
“While I do not agree with the final decision, I respect the rule of law and the role of our judiciary. I will not appeal further.”
Justice Riggs marked the occasion with a public statement of her own:
“After millions of dollars spent, more than 68,000 voters at risk of losing their votes, thousands of volunteers mobilized, and hundreds of legal documents filed, I’m glad the will of the voters was finally heard.”
“I hope everyone sees the power they hold when they use their voice.”
With Riggs’ victory, the political makeup of the North Carolina Supreme Court remains a 5–2 Republican majority. Justice Riggs’ current term runs through 2033, and the next opportunity for Democrats to shift the balance will come in 2026, when Justice Anita Earls’ seat is up for election.
Throughout the dispute, voting rights advocates and legal scholars raised concerns about the risks of disqualifying ballots after an election. While the legal battles have concluded, the case is expected to remain a prominent example of the high stakes—and deep divisions—in North Carolina’s judicial and electoral landscape.
Note: Related source documents can be found here.