Voter ambush accusations fly as razor-thin GOP primary gets ugly

In yet another shakeup of a closely-watched legislative race in North Carolina, a local elections chief in Rockingham County alleged a progressive activist illegally tried to interfere with voters going to get provisional ballots cured.

The election concerns the primary nomination for state Sen. Phil Berger, President Pro Tempore of the North Carolina Senate, and one of the most powerful Republicans in the state. As of now, he trails his primary challenger, Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page, by just two votes, with a recount, ballot curing, and legal challenges likely to decide the outcome.

According to WRAL, however, Rockingham County election board chair Don Powell alleges that there are already shenanigans in the ballot-curing process.

Per the report, Powell said a "woman was approaching voters Thursday as they entered and exited the board’s office in Reidsville, asking voters who they voted for while recording videos of the interactions. Powell says he told the woman that she wasn’t allowed to approach voters or record them at the office. He said she returned again to the office on Friday."

"Powell, who reported the incident to state elections officials, said such interactions could deter voters from meeting with elections officials. 'That prevents people from coming in, having open conversations with our people without us having to take them to a private room to ask questions and feel comfortable with the answers — because she was sitting right there,' Powell said," the report continued.

The woman, who called herself "Chris," reportedly "handed [Powell] a pamphlet from Blueprint NC Faith Table," which claimed the group is “building a nimble, responsive, adaptive and scalable network ready to counter the impact of MAGA and white Christian nationalism.”

Berger had extensive financial backing, and an endorsement for President Donald Trump. Despite this, Page, who had just $45,000 in fundraising to the millions deployed on Berger's behalf, ran an outsider campaign attacking him as an entrenched politician.