Supporters called it a measure of integrity for North Carolina elections.

The governor said it was “anti-voter legislation.”

Election Law Changes, also known as House Bill 958, was vetoed by first-term Democratic Gov. Josh Stein late Monday afternoon. The proposal would change early in-person voting periods for primaries, primary runoffs and special elections to 10 days rather than 17.

The bill also requires use of federal databases and information from other states to help remove deceased voters from the rolls. And the state auditor’s office would conduct post-election audits of county election systems at least once every six years.

“The General Assembly wants to make it harder for people to vote and easier to throw out votes they don’t like after Election Day,” Stein said.

For primaries, state law says any voter requesting an absentee ballot shall have one mailed from their respective county boards 50 days in advance in accordance with state law. The State Board of Elections does have the ability to shorten to 45.

For the general elections, the window is 60 days – most of any state in the nation.

Stein said, “This damaging bill eliminates a week of early voting in the primary, invites sore losers to try to overturn general elections by throwing out people’s votes after the race is over, and sows distrust in our elections. Instead of trying to undermine our democracy to cling to power, the Legislature should focus on improving people’s lives and winning elections fair and square.

“I am vetoing this anti-voter legislation, and I urge North Carolinians to call their legislators to ask them to uphold my veto. In our democracy, political power rests with you – the people. I intend to keep it that way.”

Amid the floor debate in the upper chamber, Sen. Warren Daniel, R-Burke, said in part, “No findings in audits under this section shall be used as grounds to challenge the final result of an election.”

Rather, the analysis would be of voter list maintenance, voting equipment tests, ballot records, chain-of-custody documentation, and handling of absentee and provisional ballots.

In a release from the office of House Speaker Destin Hall, R-Caldwell, Rep. Hugh Blackwell, R-Burke, said the proposal is just the opposite – reform “so we all can have greater confidence that every lawful vote in North Carolina is counted fairly and accurately.”

Hall said the veto would be overturned in his chamber.

“Governor Stein’s veto of this legislation puts politics ahead of common sense and the peace of mind voters should have when they cast their ballots,” said Blackwell, the chairman of the Committee on Election Law.

North Carolina in 2023 expressly, through the state budget, rejected joining the Electronic Registration Information Center that Senate Democrats pushed. The state uses data sharing agreements with the federal SAVE database and North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles.

SAVE is an acronym for Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements. It is run by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Political party integrity, supporters say, is preserved with a requirement of candidates to be affiliated with their respective party at least 365 days before seeking nomination unless the party grants a waiver.

The requirement to use the latest federal census data for redistricting and improving how registration applications are processed is a step toward modernization, say Republican lawmakers.

House passage of Election Law Changes was 62-47, with no Democrats for it and no Republicans against it. Of two unaffiliated lawmakers formerly Democrats, Rep. Carla Cunningham, U-Mecklenburg, was against the measure and Rep. Nasif Majeed, U-Mecklenburg, had an excused absence.

Passage in the Senate on July 28 was 28-13 with no Democrats for it and no Republicans against it.