Griffin asked the state Supreme Court to intervene after the State Board of Elections, which has a 3-2 Democratic majority, dismissed his challenges, which primarily argue that ballots cast by voters without a driver’s license or Social Security number on file shouldn’t count. The case was quickly moved to federal court.

A Jan. 27 oral argument at the federal 4th Circuit Court of Appeals means it's possible there's a ruling before mid-February, when the North Carolina Supreme Court has its first oral arguments of the new term.