A federal judge has halted new North Carolina absentee voting rules that gave voters more leeway to fix witness problems and extended the period when elections boards could accept mailed-in ballots. The rules, issued last week in a settlement with voting rights advocates, were blocked by a temporary restraining order issued Saturday by U.S. District Judge James Dever, who raised concerns about changing rules after numerous ballots have already been cast. Saturday’s decision comes amid a tangle of litigation in state and federal court over absentee ballots in the key presidential battleground.
