Judge Griffin’s concession in Supreme Court contest doesn’t undo the damage he inflicted

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3d ago 1:05

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The nation’s last unsettled election contest has finally been decided. On Wednesday, Republican state Supreme Court candidate Jefferson Griffin conceded to incumbent Democratic Justice Allison Riggs.

It was a long overdue act that many observers, including Justice Riggs (who prevailed in two separate recounts), are rightfully celebrating as a victory for democracy.

That said, Griffin’s challenge – which called for trashing thousands of ballots cast by voters according to the rules in effect last November – has done tremendous damage.

Not only did it waste vast sums of money and further undermine the public’s confidence in the judiciary, but one fears that it will inspire copycat losers in future elections who will try to overturn their losses by retroactively altering election rules.

God help us if this were to happen in a presidential election.

The bottom line: a federal judge dismissed Griffin’s shameless challenge as unconstitutional, but several of Griffin’s GOP pals on the state courts were ready to go along with it. And that’s a red flag that should alarm us all.

For NC Newsline, I’m Rob Schofield.

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