College Democrats sue state, Guilford elections board over campus early voting cuts

A federal lawsuit filed by the College Democrats of North Carolina and four student plaintiffs challenges decisions by the North Carolina State Board of Elections and the Guilford County Board of Elections to reject on-campus early voting locations at North Carolina A&T State University, the University of North Carolina Greensboro, and Western Carolina University. The complaint, filed Jan. 27, 2026 in Case No. 1:26-cv-00092, seeks declaratory and injunctive relief to undo the cuts.

Plaintiffs named in the filing include Zayveon Davis, Zach Powell, Rose Daphne, and Raquel Nelson, who bring the case on behalf of College Democrats of North Carolina. The defendants include the State Board of Elections and its members identified in the complaint, as well as Guilford County Board of Elections members Eugene Lester III, Carolyn Bunker, Felita Donnell, Kathryn Skeen Lindley, and Peter Francis O’Connell. Jackson County board members are also sued in their official capacities.

The heart of the complaint is a claim that removing campus voting places places “additional, unnecessary, burdensome, and ultimately unjustifiable obstacles” between students and the franchise. The complaint frames the dispute as a targeted restriction on student voting and says, “This case is about targeted efforts to place additional, unnecessary, burdensome, and ultimately unjustifiable obstacles between students at three North Carolina universities—including the nation’s largest historically Black university—and this fundamental constitutional right.” The filing also contrasts that theory with the view of the Guilford board chair, stating, “Contrary to the views of Defendant Eugene Lester, the Guilford County elections board chair, voting is a right of citizenship-not a privilege.”

The suit arises after the state board considered early-voting plans at a Jan. 13 meeting where 12 county boards had not reached unanimous decisions. The state board sided with majority votes in Guilford and Jackson counties that rejected campus sites. Plaintiffs say the decisions disproportionately burden young voters and Black voters; the complaint cites NC A&T’s status as the nation’s largest historically Black university and notes reporting that Western Carolina’s polling site “served more Black voters in 2024 than any other polling place in Jackson County.” Campuses had hosted early voting during the 2024 early-voting window, which opened Oct. 17 and closed Nov. 2.

Defendants have pushed back in filings, urging caution before altering election rules near an election and noting procedural deadlines and operations that precede election day. One defense filing argues, “These deadlines run concurrently with the cascade of other operative events that the State and county boards must complete before election day, each of which are contingent upon established and predictable operations. This should give the Court pause in considering Plaintiffs’ Motion, as the Supreme Court has ‘repeatedly emphasized that lower federal courts should ordinarily not alter the election rules on the eve of an election.’” The State Board spokesman, Pat Gannon, told reporters, “Our policy is not to comment on pending litigation.”

For Guilford County residents and campus communities in Greensboro, the suit raises immediate questions about access to convenient polling places, transit and time costs for students juggling classes and work, and how the county balances center-city and campus access. The case will proceed in federal court, and readers should expect motions and hearing dates to determine whether on-campus sites will be restored before the next election cycle.