CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Executive Director of NC's Republican Party Dallas Woodhouse said on Tuesday that if the early voting numbers were leaked then a new election is appropriate for the 9th District. 

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Woodhouse said that the state GOP party does feel quite confident that a leaking of early voting numbers did occur in Bladen Co., which would have given an unfair advantage in the election. 

He also said that this had been a major concern that their party filed a complaint about in 2016.

He called the situation "more crushing than you can ever understand." 

 

 

Woodhouse stressed that the most important thing now is that 9th District voters are confident that whomever is elected gets there fairly. 

When asked about Mark Harris, Woodhouse said he believes he is a man of high honor and that their party has no indication that he was involved in any wrongdoing. 

 

 

On Monday, the State Board of Elections and Ethics sent a letter to judges requesting the board be allowed to stay active during the entire investigation in the race between Republican Mark Harris and Democrat Dan McCready. The nine-member board would otherwise cease to exist as of Wednesday because of litigation unrelated to the 9th District.

Meanwhile, North Carolina Republicans aim to pass a law making clear new primary races also would be held for an unsettled congressional race next year if the state elections board orders a new election. Woodhouse said on Tuesday that he is not ready to address the topic of a new primary because it is still unclear how that process would work at this time. 

Unofficial results show Republican Mark Harris leading Democrat Dan McCready by 905 votes.

State law directs primaries be held when there's a U.S. House vacancy. State Rep. David Lewis says holding new primaries makes sense because it appears absentee ballots were an issue during last May's primaries in the district.