NC Democrats pledge to support Bladen Improvement Association

CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - The Bladen County Improvement Association was brought up time and time again at the 9th Congressional District election hearings. It’s a Get-Out-The-Vote Effort focusing on African-American candidates, partially funded by the North Carolina Democratic Party and covered before by WBTV Investigates.

During the hearing an election worker for McCrae Dowless said that two members of the Improvement Association including President Horace Munn, were seen at Dowless’ home copying absentee ballot applications.

In a statement the attorney for the Improvement Association said that testimony was “a deliberate lie.”

Records from the Board of Election Office show three members of the Improvement Association turned in a total of 458 absentee ballot applications before the 2018 election.

The PAC's attorney said "Individual members of the Bladen County community may have engaged in absentee balloting efforts in their individual capacities on behalf of family members, friends and associates, but those activities were not tied to the electoral activities of the Bladen County Improvement Association."

The board did not present any evidence that Improvement Association members were illegally collecting absentee ballots in the 2018 election but WBTV interviewed a couple of people in Bladen County who said their ballots were picked up by Bladen County Improvement Association members.

While campaign records show he has not donated to them before WBTV asked Dan McCready if he planned on working with the group for the next election.

“It’s not something I’ve thought about. I’ve not really work with them. I think that some of the accusations that I have been leveled are politically motivated,” McCready said.

North Carolina Democratic Party spokesperson Robert Howard said in a statement - “Bladen County Improvement Association PAC is a civil rights organization that legally helps low-income and minority communities cast their ballot. Last week’s hearing revealed no evidence suggesting any wrongdoing, yet that hasn’t stopped Republicans from trying to tear down the group rather than confront the serious case of election fraud committed by their own candidate. NCDP will continue to support civil rights organizations across the state who get out the vote.”

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