New revelation comes that Rick Southerland’s friend voted in primary election, while being a convicted felon
NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WWAY)– March 13th is the Canvass meeting, the official process of determining the votes have been counted correctly, and to certify election results.
On one of those ballots includes Rick Southerland, who was a top vote getter in the Democratic Primary for Board of Education, but dropped his candidacy after his failure to reveal he had a relationship with a registered sex offender.
“What I wanted to do was volunteer my time and my skill sets for this person that I firmly believe to be a very viable candidate, to govern a portion of this community,” said Jaymes Osborne, talking in an interview with WWAY’s Kamy Smelser, about his involvement in Rick Southerland’s race for a seat in the New Hanover County Board of Education.
It appears he did more than volunteer. According to North Carolina Board of Elections, WWAY learned that he early voted on the 25th of February.
That’s unlawful, and here’s why. Court documents show he was convicted with possession of child pornography in April of 2021. He was sentenced and served 3 years in prison and then was given 15 years of supervised release.
State law says a person convicted of a felony can’t vote until their probation period is over, but his supervision isn’t over until 2039, which would be the first opportunity for him to vote legally.
WWAY asked him why he cast a ballot, and his response was, “I’ve learned that the Second Chance Act of 2007 isn’t currently active in North Carolina.”
That legislation allows individuals with certain convictions expunged, giving them a fresh start, and reducing barriers to employment and housing, an issue that Osborne has struggled with.
“Anyone post-incarceration finds themselves with that challenge and then imagine putting sex offender on top of that,” said Osborne. “You have way more restrictions when it comes to finding housing, employment, and everything.”
Osborne spells Jaymes with a “Y”, but there’s no “Y” on the voting register. It is spelled “James”. When asked how it prevents felons from voting, the New Hanover County Board of Elections says “The New Hanover County Board of Election conducts regular voter list maintenance to ensure accuracy” and receives “routine data updates from the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction and the U.S. Department of Justice identifying individuals who may be ineligible to vote due to a felony conviction.”
The New Hanover County Board of Election says voter registration application must attest, under penalty of law, that they are not currently serving a felony sentence. State law says voter fraud is a “class one” felony.
