Federal prosecutors investigating potential election crimes have demanded documents for a grand jury reviewing a North Carolina congressional race that’s still undecided and being rerun after last year’s contest was deemed tainted.

The state elections board on Tuesday provided a grand jury subpoena issued last week showing the U.S. Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section in Washington, D.C., is conducting a criminal investigation. The subpoena demands “all documents related to the investigation of election irregularities affecting counties within the 9th Congressional District.”

Republican candidate Mark Harris and his campaign also received subpoenas for documents, his personal attorney, David Freedman, said Tuesday.

The scandal represents a rare case of a federal election redone because of fraud.

“We hope that prosecutions in these cases will help restore voters’ confidence in our elections and serve as a strong deterrent to future elections fraud,” state elections director Kim Westbrook Strach said in a statement Tuesday.

The elections board heard evidence last month that a political operative working for Harris in rural Bladen County collected mail-in ballots, making votes vulnerable to being changed or discarded. The elections board ordered a new contest for the district, which includes part of Charlotte and extends eastward along the South Carolina border almost to the Army’s Fort Bragg.

Harris isn’t running in the new race that opened Monday with candidate filing that continues through Friday. Democrat Dan McCready is running again after what appeared to be a narrow loss in November’s election. Party primaries are scheduled for May 14 with the general election in September.

Harris’ former political operative, Leslie McCrae Dowless Jr., also received a grand jury subpoena, WBTV in Charlotte reported. Dowless and his attorney didn’t respond to messages from The Associated Press on Tuesday.

Dowless and four people he allegedly hired to collect ballots were charged in state court last month on felony charges, including possessing absentee ballots related to their work in the 2016 primary and general elections and last year’s GOP primary. The district attorney prosecuting the case said she also is investigating potential crimes leading up to the 2018 general election.

Dowless’ state charges involve a similar ballot-collection scheme that the elections board uncovered in late 2016 and notified the U.S. attorney’s office. Since then, federal prosecutors based in Raleigh have given no public indication they did anything about warnings from Strach that her office found “that individuals and potentially groups of individuals engaged in efforts to manipulate election results through the absentee ballot process.”

“The evidence we have obtained suggest that these efforts may have taken place in the past and if not addressed will likely continue for future elections,” Strach wrote to the acting U.S. attorney in January 2017.

Spokesmen for the Justice Department in Washington and the U.S. attorney’s office in Raleigh refused to explain why the agency’s Public Integrity Section has taken on the 9th District case. The section is responsible for combating corruption by public officials and supervises the investigation and prosecution of election crimes.

Harris’ son, John, has worked as an assistant U.S. attorney in Raleigh since October. He testified during last month’s state elections board hearing that he warned his father repeatedly against hiring Dowless, telling him Dowless was likely using illegal methods to deliver surprisingly large numbers of absentee votes.

The elections board’s subpoena demands the documents in time for three days of grand jury proceedings starting April 16.

Related Stories
‹
On the Porch: Nora Gaskin - Conjuring Crime Stories
This Week: Author Nora Gaskin is a lifelong resident of the Durham-Chapel Hill area. Her latest is novel is "Lammie Loves Cubby". Nora has a bachelor’s degree in English with Honors in Creative Writing from UNC, and a Masters in English from the University of Washington in Seattle. She spent over 24 years as a stockbroker and financial advisor in the Durham office of a major investment firm. She retired in 2005 to focus on writing. She is the publisher at Lystra Books and Literary Services and the author of three novels and one nonfiction book. She lives and writes in Chatham County, inspired by her native landscape, her husband, and dogs. Her favorite word is "gratitude."
Therapy Smarts and Sen. Natalie Murdock on How HB696 Impacts Children and Families — On Air Today (June 15, 2026)
Founder and CEO of Therapy Smarts Avani Shah and N.C. District 20 Sen. Natalie Murdock speak with 97.9 The Hill on Monday, June 15.
On the Porch: Steven Fenberg - What Funded America's Infrastructure?
This Week: Writer Steven Fenberg discovered Jesse Jones was reputedly the most powerful person in the nation next to President Franklin Roosevelt during the Great Depression and World War II. As chairman of the federal government’s Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC)—the nation’s indispensable infrastructure bank—Jones initiated and managed massive New Deal agencies that saved and expanded the nation’s economy and then shifted the RFC’s priority from domestic economics to global defense to fight and win WWII. Fenberg told this remarkable story as executive producer and co-writer of the Emmy Award winning documentary film “Brother, Can You Spare a Billion?” that was narrated by Walter Cronkite and broadcast nationally on PBS. Fenberg then wrote the biography “Unprecedented Power: Jesse Jones, Capitalism, and the Common Good.”
Viewpoints: Constitutional Changes Are Rarely Necessary
Constitutional amendments are supposed to be rare. They are supposed to matter. They are meant to alter foundational principles or governmental structure when absolutely necessary. 
On the Porch: Terri Mitchell - Mentoring Women in Tech
This Week: Terri Mitchell is the founder of Accelerate Success, a program to help women develop the confidence, skills, and networks needed to thrive in STEM careers. She is a former IBM executive with more than 30 years of experience in the technology industry. Starting as a graduate of Le Moyne College with a degree in Computer Science, she held leadership roles across hardware, software, and systems businesses, culminating in her role as Vice President and IBM Integration Executive. Following her retirement from IBM in 2018, Terri became a founding member of Triangle Women in STEM and began the Accelerate Success program.
On the Porch: Carl Nordgren - Creativity Can Unite US
This Week: Carl Nordgren is a best-selling novelist, a teacher, and an imaginal cell. After 25 years as an entrepreneur, he taught Creativity at Duke for 14 years. He’s a two-time TEDx speaker and hosts the weekly radio show ‘Exploring your Creative Genius’ on 97.9 The Hill. His calling is to help each of us and all of us grow our creative capacities and develop our entrepreneurial instincts and behaviors, a calling that informed his book "Becoming a Creative Genius (again)". His new book, "Common Ground for US" continues that work and offers new perspectives on governance and policy making for political and community leaders. You can attend his book launch event at Golden Fig Books in Carrboro on June 4, by clicking the show title above.
On the Porch: Tiffany Muller - End Citizens United
This Week: Tiffany Muller is the President of End Citizens United. She has helped grow the group into a nationwide organization with more than 4 million members and 1 million grassroots donors. Before leading End Citizens United, Tiffany was Deputy Political Director at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, where she worked with top Senate races. She also served as chief of staff to two members of Congress, ran a political research firm, and was Vice President of Political Operations at the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund. As a member of the Topeka City Council, she led successful efforts to expand anti-discrimination protections. 
Anderson Clayton on N.C. Democratic Party's General Election Preparation — On Air Today (May 20, 2026)
Chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party Anderson Clayton joins 97.9 The Hill News Director Brighton McConnell on Wednesday, May 20.
Rep. Allen Buansi Shares Details on Bill for Millionaire Tax to Fund Public Schools
The District 56 representative joined 97.9 The Hill to discuss the bill he's co-sponsoring to explore new ways for funding public schools.
On the Porch: Graig Meyer - NC Justice Center
This Week: Graig Meyer is the Executive Director of the NC Justice Center where he will continue to "prioritize decisions and policies that make our state safer, healthier, more fair, and more prosperous". Meyer brings more than a decade of leadership in the North Carolina General Assembly, where he served in the House of Representatives beginning in 2013 and most recently in the State Senate representing Orange, Person, and Caswell Counties. Throughout his legislative career, Meyer championed strong public education, access to health care, economic opportunity for working families, and policies that strengthen communities across the state. Before entering public office, Graig spent sixteen years working in North Carolina’s public schools. A trained social worker and longtime public-school advocate, Graig has focused his public service on helping families connect to the resources and opportunities they need to thrive. 
›