Give it up, Jefferson Griffin – you lost and now it’s time to concede to Justice Allison Riggs

North Carolina voters have chosen Democrat Allison Riggs to retain her seat on the state Supreme Court. We know that because the votes have been counted and she received more of them than her opponent, Republican Jefferson Griffin. 

Counting the votes once wasn’t enough for Griffin, though. Following a statewide canvass, a statewide machine recount, a partial hand-to-eye recount, and a rejected attempt to disenfranchise more than 60,000 voters, the results remain clear to everyone but the losing candidate: voters chose Riggs.

Yes, the vote was extremely close – fewer than 750 votes out of more than 5.5 million cast separate the two candidates – but this margin is significantly more than the 401 votes that Paul Newby defeated then-Chief Justice Cheri Beasley by in 2020 and that race did not drag on for more than five weeks. Beasley asked for a recount, received it, was still trailing and then conceded to Newby. 

Griffin doesn’t seem to believe in one of the core principles of our system of governance: the people choose their leaders via free and fair elections and neither a legislative, administrative nor judicial body can overrule the will of the people.

The full process, including multiple recounts, has run its course and there is now just one thing left for Griffin to do: accept the results and concede the race.

While it would be a travesty of justice and a slap in the face to the voters of North Carolina, it appears Griffin is likely to take legal action in hopes that he can get his right-wing pals on the state Supreme Court to intervene. 

Riggs’ lawyer, Ray Bennett, said earlier this week that Griffin’s push to throw out 60,000 votes was a last-ditch attempt to change voting laws after the election was over.

“Election protests here violate a bedrock principle so basic, you learn it in elementary school: If you lose, you don’t try to change the rules so you can claim that you won,” Bennett said.

If you believe that it’s time for Jefferson Griffin to accept reality and concede the race, click here to send an email and let him know.