Nathan Miller's Attempt to Derail Boone Town Council Elections Now Hurtling Toward Resolution Today

Nathan Miller

Wake County Superior Court Judge Paul Ridgeway will hear the petition for a Writ of Mandamus filed by Sam Furgiuele, Marshall Ashcraft, and Connie Ulmer today, Tuesday, December 12, 2017, at 2:30 p.m. in Courtroom 3C of the Wake County Courthouse. The defendant in this action is actually the State Board of Elections, which the judge can direct to order the local board of elections to certify the November 7 election so that Furgiuele, Ashcraft, and Ulmer can be sworn in on December 21, as previously scheduled.

How We Got Here

Furgiuele, Ashcraft, and Ulmer win the Boone Town Council races on November 7; Watauga GOP through Nathan Miller files election protest over early voting site in ASU Student Union; his protest is voted down as "without merit" by the Watauga County Board of Elections; Miller appeals to the State Board of Elections (which currently doesn't exist)

State Board of Elections attorneys tell Miller he must appeal to the Wake Superior Court by a date certain; Miller misses the appeal date and says he doesn't care what the State Board of Elections attorneys tell him. He claims his protest can wait until a proper SBOE is appointed, and until then, no new municipal office-holders can be sworn in.

Furgiuele, Ashcraft, and Ulmer petition for a Writ of Mandamus to end Miller's protest and to declare their election certified. Their petition contains a motion for expedited hearing, which Judge Ridgeway granted yesterday, scheduling the hearing for this afternoon.