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Since Republicans took over North Carolina’s election board last year, they have changed the rules to make it harder to vote early and empowered local Republicans to block certain voters and throw out ballots on party-line votes. The new rules could be viewed as the culmination of the GOP’s voter suppression efforts in recent decades, and it could set the stage for yet another attempt to change the outcome of an election. Given the role North Carolina might play in deciding control of Congress during the 2026 midterms, the stakes could not be higher.

This week, state Republicans took an even more dangerous step that could threaten the credibility of that vote. The state elections board adopted a new rule on Monday that requires voters, instead of local election workers, to fix problems with their absentee ballots if they want them to count. This comes after they changed the rules just last week to allow Republican majorities on local election boards to block voters who cast their ballots through the mail or on Election Day. Such decisions had to be unanimous in past elections.

The board’s decision last week was the latest effort to restrict voting through a new voter ID mandate. Voters without ID can cast a provisional ballot if they face a “reasonable impediment” to getting the required documents. But Republican board members will now have the power to decide that people are lying about their impediments.

These........

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