After a brief and contentious tenure, DeNay Harris was placed on paid administrative leave in late March. The New Hanover County Board of Elections, which had made the unanimous bipartisan decision to hire Harris at the beginning of the year, again voted in unison to petition the state for her removal.
After allowing Harris time to respond to the petition, Sam Hayes, executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, issued a decision to uphold her termination on May 20. Under the law, the State Board of Elections then had 20 days to intervene, which it chose not to do. Hayes' decision became official on June 9. According to Harris’ petition, she received notice the following day.
The New Hanover County Board of Elections (NHCBOE) has since hired a new elections director, approved by the state earlier this month.
Harris is now petitioning the courts to review the decision.
“The State Board of Elections made a decision directly affecting Ms. Harris, namely affirming the New Hanover County Board of Elections’ petition to terminate [her] employment and finding additional reasons of its own,” her petition reads.
While termination letters for most government employees are considered to be public records, the state’s determination letter for Harris was not released, with both state and local officials claiming it was protected by personnel law. The difference appears to be the state law that outlines the removal process specifically for county elections directors.
According to Harris’ petition, Hayes cited at least six reasons for termination.
“1) failure to challenge the ballot of a deceased voter; 2) failure of election day responsibilities and procedures; 3) false allegations of email tampering; 4) public dissemination of unverified, false and misleading comprehensive statement; 5) failure to implement transition plan and escalation of facility access issues; and 6) a prior criminal conviction,” according to the petition.
Harris’ petition claims that those “decisions were made in violation of constitutional provisions, made upon unlawful procedure, unsupported by substantial evidence, and arbitrary, capricious, or an abuse of discretion.”
Notably, most of the reasons cited by Harris were related to her high-profile clashes with local officials, except for the “prior criminal conviction” item. State records from Virginia, where Harris lived and worked prior to being hired in New Hanover County, indicate a misdemeanor reckless driving charge that was dismissed in early 2025, but no convictions.
Harris is requesting to be reinstated as elections director, and an award of back pay, front pay (an additional compensation tool used when reinstatement isn’t immediately possible), attorney fees, and damages in excess of $25,000.
Harris’ petition for judicial review was filed in Wake County Superior Court on July 10 by Jocelyn Burton, an employment attorney from California who is also licensed in North Carolina, according to her website.
NHCBOE Chair Jamie Getty was not available for comment. WHQR also reached out to Harris’ attorney for comment, and will update this article with any additional information.
Backstory
Harris was hired in January and started work in early February. Her first few weeks went relatively smoothly, but following Primary Election Day, her relationship with the New Hanover County Board of Elections (NHCBOE) and the office of County Manager Chris Coudriet deteriorated rapidly. By law, the county provides funding for election facilities and staff, but election offices remain independent state agencies.
Related: Between the offices": Relationship between NHC elections director and county manager on shaky ground
Harris made numerous allegations, including claims that county staff who had been assisting with the election had broken election security laws, after which Coudriet implied to Harris that he could withhold county resources. Harris and at least one NHCBOE board member said they felt Coudriet was overstepping — and not for the first time — but Coudriet said he felt his comments were appropriate.
Harris suggested there was a web of relationships between people in local leadership, although she failed to explain how these might be nefarious. Harris also alleged she was bullied and retaliated against for attempting to enforce those election laws. She claimed that part of that retaliation involved manipulating her email, saying some messages were deleted from her inbox and, on at least one occasion, a message was sent to the press from her account without her knowledge. Harris told reporters she believed this was being done by Coudriet and her own board to undermine her position.
A preliminary investigation of Harris’ email system and physical laptop was conducted by third-party vendors on behalf of the county. It found no evidence of hacking or tampering.
Both the county and NHCBOE have denied all forms of wrongdoing.
Below: DeNay Harris' petition.
