By Miles Layton

HERTFORD — Henry House, a retired executive chef and baker, has been hired as the new director of elections for Perquimans County.

“I am anxious and excited to get started,” House said.

House begins Monday, said Dianne Layden, chairperson of the Perquimans County Board of Elections. The hire fills a vacancy left when former director Robbins Cherry resigned July 21.

Layden said House brings a strong information technology background, along with experience developing budgets and line items, skills she said will serve the office as it prepares for the Nov. 3 election.

“We are excited to finally have a new Director in place,” Layden said. “This will be a steep learning curve for us all as we begin early voting this week, but we are confident that an honest and fair election will occur.”

House’s start comes as early voting begins Thursday, leaving little time for a transition. The director oversees day-to-day operations of the county elections office.

House said he spent a decade working on database development for a dairy co-op, work that aligned with state and federal record-keeping requirements. Before that, he worked his way up from warehouse worker to chief financial officer of a small beverage distributor. He served as president of the company’s state association until the business was sold.

He has also spent 32 years as a soccer referee, officiating matches from the college level down to youth games. For 20 years, he worked as a referee assignor across a three-state area, managing more than 300 adult and youth referees and about 2,000 matches annually. He later spent eight years as a state referee assignor, overseeing all of the assignors in the state, and a decade as a referee trainer.

House and his wife, Gail, own and operate Carolina Moon Bakery in Hertford.

House has also been active in local Republican leadership, including serving as an officer and as chair of the Perquimans County Republican Party.

In other election news, the North Carolina State Board of Elections will send letters this week to 1,392 registered voters identified as potential non-U.S. citizens through the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database. SAVE is a federal database used by government agencies to verify immigration and citizenship status. The findings represent approximately 0.02% of North Carolina’s 7.9 million registered voters.

The letters will provide registrants with instructions on how to voluntarily request removal from the voter rolls if they were registered in error or provide information verifying their U.S. citizenship. See a copy of the letter.

“Maintaining accurate voter rolls and ensuring that only U.S. citizens participate in our elections are fundamental duties of the State Board,” said Sam Hayes, executive director of the State Board of Elections. “While these registrations represent a small percentage of our voter rolls, one ineligible registrant is still one too many. We have a duty to enforce the law while protecting the rights of every eligible legitimate voter.”

Earlier this year, the Department of Homeland Security identified nearly 1,600 potential non-citizens on the voter rolls. However, further comparisons with the SAVE database, combined with additional reviews by the State Board and checks against state DMV records, have reduced that number.

In July, the State Board announced that it would review potentially ineligible registrations before initiating any removal proceedings. The mailing represents the next step in that process.

On September 25, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling allowing continued use of the SAVE database for voter list maintenance purposes while litigation proceeds. The State Board will continue utilizing available federal citizenship verification tools consistent with applicable law.

Verification and Review Process

Inclusion on the SAVE database does not necessarily mean an individual is ineligible to vote. Citizenship information may be incomplete or outdated, particularly for individuals who have become naturalized U.S. citizens. This is why the State Board conducts a review of available records when receiving data back from the SAVE database.

Once data is returned from SAVE, the State Board conducts additional reviews. This includes checking voter records to see if a registrant previously showed a U.S. passport when voting or provided citizenship documents to the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles.

When available records do not establish citizenship, the registrant will be asked to provide corrected or updated information before any removal proceedings are initiated.

Protecting Eligible Voters

No voter will be automatically removed from the voter rolls based solely on information obtained through SAVE. Any removal proceedings must comply with applicable state and federal laws, including requirements for notice and due process.

Individuals who receive a letter and believe they have been identified in error should follow the instructions provided and contact the State Board to resolve any discrepancy.

Receiving a letter does not cancel an individual’s voter registration or automatically prevent an otherwise eligible voter from participating in the November 3 general election. Any voter challenge or determination of ineligibility must follow the procedures established under North Carolina and federal law.

Public Information and Transparency

The State Board will provide information about the review process while protecting individual registrants’ information and the integrity of any ongoing investigations or eligibility reviews.

The State Board will continue to review citizenship information, resolve discrepancies, and maintain accurate voter registration records ahead of the election.

For additional information about the SAVE verification process and voter list maintenance, visit Maintaining Accurate Voter Rolls.