Lawyers have traded arguments in a North Carolina courtroom over whether some proposed constitutional amendments that Republican legislators submitted to voters this fall should be left off ballots.

A Wake County judge heard for nearly three hours Tuesday from attorneys for Gov. Roy Cooper and two nonprofit groups who say referendum questions for two or maybe four amendments are false and misleading. Two of them would shift powers from Cooper to the legislature if approved.

Judge Paul Ridgeway didn’t immediately rule on the plaintiffs’ request to block the questions and is going to forward the case to a three-judge panel because the constitutionality of the amendment legislation is being challenged.

An attorney for legislative leaders told Ridgeway the amendment questions are presented properly and should be presumed lawful.