The lawsuit filed in Wake County Superior Court on Friday says the board’s decision to deny Kenendy’s request to remove his name from the ballot violates his free speech rights and accuses the board of making an issue out of nothing.
“By refusing to acknowledge Kennedy’s statutory rights and entitlements, defendants have irreparably harmed him,” the lawsuit said. “Even worse, by forcing Kennedy to remain on the ballot against his will, defendants are compelling speech in violation of [the Constitution].”
“Thus to the extent NCSBE claims it is ‘impractical’ to remove him from the ballot, it is an issue of NCSBE’s own making,” the lawsuit added.
The legal move comes a day after North Carolina’s board of elections voted 3-2 to deny Kennedy’s request to remove his name from the ballot. The board has a Democratic majority, and the vote was along party lines.
According to the board’s executive director, Karen Brinson, North Carolina has already printed 1.73 million ballots in over 60 counties, and special ballots have already been prepared for overseas military members and the disabled.
Kennedy suspended his presidential campaign on Aug. 23 and endorsed former President Donald Trump. He pledged to remain on the ballots in states not likely to be competitive while removing his name from ballots in states that will be.
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However, that has not exactly gone as planned, with Michigan and Wisconsin also denying Kennedy’s request to be removed from their respective ballots.
Polling from the Hill and Decision Desk HQ shows Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris tied in North Carolina at 48.1% in a head-to-head race. However, adding Kennedy’s name takes support away from Trump, dropping him down to 43.5% and giving Harris 48.8%.
