After being appointed to the State Senate, Chris Measmer led the Cabarrus County Commission in a rushed vote under suspended rules to name his replacement. The rushed nature of the vote was criticized at the time because it excluded two members “who tend to vote against Measmer,” which allowed the most extreme candidate to be named.

After being challenged in court by residents of Cabarrus County, Superior Court Judge Warren ruled that the appointment “was invalid and void as a matter of law as the vacancy did not yet exist” and ordered Cabarrus County to cover the legal fees for the residents who filed to stop this illegitimate appointment. Jeff Jones was then named to fill the vacancy.

“Chris Measmer suspended the rules to hold a rushed vote with only the most partisan members of the Cabarrus Commission present so that he could illegally cast the tie-breaking vote to appoint the most extreme replacement possible. Following the law is not optional, and it’s unfortunate that the taxpayers of Cabarrus County are forced to pick up the tab for Measmer’s power grab,” said Dawson McNamara-Bloom, a spokesperson for the North Carolina Democratic Party.