When North Carolina Republican Gov. Pat McCrory signed into law one of the nation’s most sweeping Voter ID laws last August, a flurry of major court battles began over voting rights. One of them was led by 22-year-old Elizabeth City State University (ECSU) political science student Montravias King. He challenged the dormitory residency requirements since the Pasquotank County Elections Board stipulated that a dormitory could not be considered a permanent residence for the purposes of voting.
The North Carolina Board of Elections then ruled last month that King, who lives and plans to remain living in an ECSU dormitory, did, in fact, meet the residency requirement and was eligible to run for the municipal council. The ruling could have prevented all college students who lived on campus in North Carolina from voting. Optimism and persistence led to King’s decisive win, obtaining the city council seat last week.
King said that his victory helps bolster college student interest in the political process and to not be discouraged when they feel like politicians do not represent them.
“College students need to vote, especially at the local level, so that they can elect representatives that serve and protect their issues,” said King, who was scheduled to speak about voter suppression Thursday at a non-governmental organization (NGO) conference sponsored by the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Women’s Missionary Society at the United Nations in New York.
As councilman, one of King’s first orders of business is to further establish and cultivate the relationship between ECSU and the city. He indicated that “the image of the university is not what it could be, and if done well, that can change, and Elizabeth City can become a true college town with a positive impact on economic development and jobs.”
King explains his sense of urgency to make change. “A high poverty rate and one of the highest per-kilowatt electricity rates in the state is unacceptable.”
