RALEIGH, N.C. -- North Carolina's Democratic-controlled state elections board has selected its new executive director.
- The board has named Karen Brinson Bell as the new executive director.
- Kim Strach had been at that position since 2013
- She kept the post as GOP legislators and Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper fought in court over the past two years about the board's composition.
Kim Strach had been at that position since 2013 and recently led the investigation into absentee ballot fraud in the 9th Congressional District.
Strach was the choice of the board when Republicans held a 3-2 majority. She kept the post as GOP legislators and Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper fought in court over the past two years about the board's composition. She joined the board staff in 2000. She worked on campaign finance probes that led to action against Democratic House Speaker Jim Black and Gov. Mike Easley, as well as Republican state Sen. Fletcher Hartsell.
Bell was tapped as new executive director in a 3-2 vote across party lines. Strach's last day will be on May 31, with Bell expected to start on June 1.
Josh Lawson the general counsel for the board, resigned after Strach's ousting. He released a statement which reads in part, "Choices shape democracy, and yours have outsized effect in our State. This agency serves voters best when it chooses accountability over complacency, people over partisanship, and the future over our past."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.