2 GOP members of NC State Board of Elections resign over absentee ballot settlement

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- The two Republican members of the NC State Board of Elections resigned late Wednesday night in protest of a proposed settlement to a lawsuit on absentee ballots.

David Black and Ken Raymond submitted their letters of resignation to the State Board of Elections, according to a statement from the board. In their letters, the Republicans believe they were blindsided on their agreement to make the deal.

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The proposed settlement, which was approved by all five members of the board, allows voters whose absentee ballots have deficient information to fix them without having to fill out a new blank ballot.

Sources told ABC11, the proposed settlement, if approved, will likely be challenged by President Donald Trump in federal court.

"We appreciate their service to the State Board, particularly the knowledge and perspective they provided from their years of service as members of county boards of elections," The North Carolina State Board of Elections wrote in a statement.

"Attorneys from AG Josh Stein's office did not advise us of the fact that a lot of the concessions made in the settlement have already been denied in a prior case by a federal judge and another case by a state court three-judge panel," Black wrote in part.

READ: David Black's resignation letter to the North Carolina State Board of Election

The sudden resignation of the two members, effectively, reduces the NC State Board of Elections to three.

READ: Ken Raymond's resignation letter to the North Carolina State Board of Election