North Carolina
North Carolina court race margin narrows as counties complete Election Day tallies
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — An already close race for a North Carolina Supreme Court seat narrowed further as most counties on Friday completed final tallies from the Nov. 5 election, setting the stage for possible recounts next week.
With over 80 of the state’s 100 counties completing their work, Associate Justice Allison Riggs, a registered Democrat, trailed Republican challenger Jefferson Griffin by about 3,400 votes from over 5.5 million cast. On election night, the lead for Griffin, a Court of Appeals judge, was roughly 10,000 votes.
State law lets a trailing candidate in a statewide race seek a machine recount — basically running ballots again through tabulator machines — when the margin is 10,000 votes or less. Riggs, who is one of two Democrats on the seven-member court, would have until early next week to decide.
The recount would be completed before the State Board of Elections completes its canvass and certifies results on Nov. 26.
Tens of thousands of provisional and absentee ballots examined by county elections boards in recent days and determined to have met qualifying standards were added to election night totals. Elections boards in all counties met to consider any challenges or protests, upload their totals to state election board computers and certify their results as official.
A handful of counties won’t finish their canvassing work Friday and will continue Saturday or Monday, state elections board spokesperson Pat Gannon said late Friday.
Complete, canvassed results in areas with very close legislative races, which like the Supreme Court contest have not been called by The Associated Press, still indicate that Republicans are unlikely to maintain their veto-proof majority in the General Assembly.
A House seat that covers two rural counties north of the Raleigh-Durham area is the key race. Canvassed results showed first-term GOP Rep. Frank Sossamon trailing Democrat Bryan Cohn by 233 votes. The margin was within the recount-request range for legislative seats of 1 percentage point.
Should Cohn win, Democrats would hold at least 49 of the 120 House seats — one more than needed to end the Republicans’ current veto-proof majority in the chamber when the next two-year session begins in January. That would give Democratic Gov.-elect Josh Stein a more robust veto stamp to block GOP legislation he opposes.
Senate Republicans maintained their supermajority by winning the necessary 30 seats in their chamber. But results were still close enough in elections for two of the 50 seats that recounts could be sought.
Also in the House, Mecklenburg County state Rep. Tricia Cotham still led Democratic opponent Nicole Sidman after Friday’s local canvass. The 216-vote margin is within the recount range. Sidman suggested Friday on X that a recount was likely.
It was Cotham’s switch from the Democrats to the Republicans in April 2023 that secured the necessary 72 House seats to override Cooper’s vetoes in both chambers by relying solely on GOP lawmakers. Cotham has since been targeted electorally by Democrats.
Friday’s results otherwise didn’t affect the outcome of other state and federal races on the Nov. 5 ballot, including Republican Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential race, Democrat Josh Stein’s win for governor and Democrat Jeff Jackson’s victory for attorney general.
Some of the more than 60,000 provisional ballots considered since Election Day were labeled as such because a voter wasn’t able to show an acceptable photo identification. Other provisional ballots can be cast by people who try to vote on Election Day at the wrong precinct site.
A new state law taking effect this year required traditional absentee ballots to be turned in by the close of Election Day polls. But the law directs those received on Election Day to be counted during the canvassing period. Mailed military and overseas ballots could be received later and counted if postmarked by Election Day.
North Carolina
North Carolina couple accused of causing vulture invasion sued by furious town: ‘Not good neighbors’
A North Carolina couple accused of luring hordes of vultures to their home and unleashing chaos on neighbors for years is being hauled to court by fed-up town officials desperate to end the feathered frenzy.
The Town of Hillsborough slapped residents Kenneth and Linda Ostrand with a civil petition, seeking a court order to shut down their relentless bird-feeding habit, blamed for allegedly drawing dozens of winged scavengers to their home and terrorizing their small town for the past two years.
“They’re a little spooky to be frank,” concerned neighbor Holden Richards told WTVD.
“Everybody thinks they’re ugly and stuff but they’re not good neighbors. They have sharp talons, so they’re not great animals to have perching on your house. I watched them pick tiles off my neighbor’s roof and I found tiles from my roof in my front yard, so I have a feeling that’s exactly where they came from.”
The bird-brained couple is accused of leaving out food scraps for vultures, allegedly reeling in the feathered predators that have swarmed and roosted near their house, leaving foul-smelling droppings on neighbors’ homes and vehicles and causing widespread property damage deemed a risk to public safety.
The complaint, filed in March, also claims the twisted pair named the birds of prey – with eerie photos submitted to the court showing dozens of vultures circling their Queens Street home, the outlet reported.
“I’m pretty sure that every one of my neighbors has probably called,” Richards said, pointing to a flood of complaints made to town officials since May 2024.
The Ostrands reportedly filed a motion to dismiss the town’s case last month, denying the accusations.
Linda Ostrand, a longtime wildlife rescuer, told WTVD she is being unfairly targeted by her community and claimed the circling creatures were already an issue before she moved into the neighborhood.
“It’s sort of, it’s ridiculous, is what it is,” Linda said, noting the town changed an ordinance after the initial wave of complaints to ban wildlife feeding beyond standard feeders.
“If people didn’t have vultures around here you would hear them screaming bloody murder about the town not cleaning up the animals that have been hit by cars, because that’s what they do, they are nature’s garbage disposal,” she continued.
“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do, tell the vultures that this is a no-feed zone. I just don’t know.”
No court date has reportedly been scheduled for the couple’s fight with the town.
North Carolina
Businesses worry of potential impacts as Marion tightens water restrictions amid drought
MARION, N.C. (WLOS) — The City of Marion is tightening water restrictions as drought conditions persist across western North Carolina, prompting local businesses to prepare for possible impacts on daily operations.
The drought monitor released on Thursday, May 14, shows that extreme drought now covers 90% of western North Carolina.
ASHEVILLE IS MORE THAN 7 INCHES BELOW AVERAGE RAINFALL THIS YEAR, DATA SHOWS
As the region continues moving into a hotter and drier pattern, the City of Marion officials announced Stage Two water shortage restrictions less than a month after issuing a Stage One Water Advisory.
Businesses in Marion said the quick escalation is raising concerns about what could come next if drought conditions persist.
“They put us in stage one at the end of April and already it’s not through, it’s not the end of May and they’re already putting us in stage two,” said Barbara Brown, owner of Bruce’s.
Under the Stage Two restrictions, watering lawns, gardens and golf courses will be prohibited. Washing cars, filling residential swimming pools and serving water in restaurants except upon request will not be allowed.
Brown said her restaurant is already taking steps to conserve water.
“We check the bathrooms often to make sure people have turned the water off because we have found from time to time, people leave them running,” she added.
She said she worries stronger restrictions could eventually force businesses to make bigger operational changes.
“I’m concerned that eventually we might have to go to paper plates, paper cups, silverware,” Brown said.
Other businesses are also considering adjustments.
Kat Garner, a tattoo artist at Blue Ridge Tattoo, said water shortages could affect how the shop operates day to day.
LEADERS URGE WATER CONSERVATION AS DROUGHT DEEPENS ACROSS WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
“We would definitely be reduced to using distilled water for everything, which would become harder if everyone’s buying it out, so that would definitely make things a little bit more difficult,” Garner said.
The Stage Two water restrictions are set to begin Friday, May 15, at 8 a.m. and will last until further notice.
North Carolina
Police: North Carolina man charged after high-speed chase in Erie County, arrested in the Town of Perry
PERRY, N.Y. — A North Carolina man is in custody after a chase that started in Erie County and ended with an arrest in Perry.
Wyoming County Sheriff’s deputies say Ericson Vasquez-Moran, 22, rammed a Border Patrol vehicle in Erie County around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday before taking off. The suspect was spotted in Warsaw on Route 20A, but a chase was called off due to high speeds.
Then around 2:30 a.m. Wednesday, deputies say Vasquez-Moran called 911 from Perry to surrender.
He’s charged with speeding, failure to keep right, unlawful fleeing a police officer, reckless driving, and reckless endangerment in the second degree.
Vasquez-Moran was given an appearance ticket for the Village of Warsaw Court and was released to the custody of the United States Border Patrol.
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