Voters try again to pick District 9 congressman

LUMBERTON — Voters who live in District 9 will try again starting on Wednesday to elect their congressman — and those who are Republican or pick that ballot will have a 10-item menu. That is the first day of early voting in the primary, quite possibly the first of two, of the state-ordered, re-do election for the N.C. District 9 seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. This contest began in earnest in early 2018 and already has involved multiple candidates, primaries, an election day, allegations of irregularities involving absentee ballots, an investigation, a four-day evidentiary hearing, a do-over ruling by the State Board of Elections, and criminal charges against political operatives. When voting starts Wednesday, 13 candidates representing four political parties will be on the ballot, but there is a single candidate on the Democratic, Green and Libertarian ballots. Ten Republicans filed as candidates. Unaffiliated voters can pick which ballot they prefer. In order to avoid a runoff, one of the Republican candidates must receive at least 30 percent of the vote. Voters in Anson, Richmond, Robeson, Scotland, and Union counties and parts of Bladen, Cumberland and Mecklenburg counties will be taking part in the early voting period that will be Wednesday through May 11. In Robeson County, there are two sites being used, the public library in Pembroke, located at 413 S. Blaine St., and the Robeson County Board of Elections Office in Lumberton, located at 800 N. Walnut St. in Lumberton. Voting will take place only during normal business hours at the county Board of Elections office, 8:15 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. Voting at the Pembroke site will be 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. during the week, 1 to 4 p.m. on Sunday and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 4, which is a Saturday. During early voting, a person can register

Read more from our friends at the NRA...