New Boards Act Quickly On Elections

Local elections boards are now doing business after a fight over a 2016 election law led to a lengthy pause.

The Watauga County board quickly agreed to an early voting plan for the May primary. That might not seem like a big deal. But the board had been at loggerheads for years over voting sites, and few decisions ever came easily.

The Watauga Democrat reports that the new four-member board unanimously approved an early-voting precinct on the campus of Appalachian State University. That had been the most highly contentious site the board previously fought over.

And in Lexington, Davidson County's new board has set a hearing for Tuesday over a challenge to Gerald Hege's candidacy for sheriff. In 2010 voters approved a change to the state constitution barring convicted felons from the position.

Hege was ousted as the county's top law enforcement officer and ultimately pleaded guilty to two felony obstruction of justice charges more than 10 years ago. He argues his record has been expunged, allowing him to run. A challenger says the wording of the law still bars him from doing so.