The political machinery of North Carolina's election oversight clicked into a new gear yesterday, as five newly appointed members joined the State Board of Elections. They were sworn into their roles for the upcoming four-year term and wasted no time in electing a new chairman and secretary, as well as appointing an executive director, in a series of moves that suggest a commitment to maintaining the integrity and efficiency of the state's electoral process.
Francis X. De Luca, a Republican out of Wilmington, was chosen as Board chairman, stating, "It’s a great honor to be selected as chair of the North Carolina State Board of Elections," in a statement obtained by the NC State Board of Elections. De Luca is poised to begin to actively engage with his colleagues on the administration of board business and vowed "to build and maintain the public’s confidence in elections. We want to follow the law, and make it easy to vote and hard to cheat."
Accompanying De Luca in leadership, Stacy “Four” Eggers IV of Boone snagged the title of Board secretary. Furthermore, in a decisive step towards filling out the administrative ranks, Sam Hayes has been tapped to start serving as the state agency's executive director from May 15. Hayes will be succeeding Karen Brinson Bell, who led since 2019 and had her role re-upped twice by the board. This shake-up marks Hayes as the fifth individual to take the executive director's chair in state history, as per NC State Board of Elections.
The swearing-in and subsequent appointments follow close on the heels of the introduction of the five board members by State Auditor Dave Boliek. The Republican appointees, nominated by the chair of the North Carolina Republican Party, include De Luca, a retired Marine Colonel and past president of the Civitas Institute; Robert Rucho, a retired dentist and long-serving former state senator; and Eggers, a managing partner at the Eggers Law Firm and a seasoned member of the board. The Democratic side sees Jeff Carmon, a licensed attorney with board experience since 2019, and Siobhan O’Duffy Millen of Raleigh, a retired lawyer with a history of precinct-level judicial service, as nominated by their party chairperson.
This overhaul of the State Board of Elections involves the appointment of experienced professionals to key roles, reflecting North Carolina's ongoing efforts to maintain a reliable and fair electoral framework.
