At The Iredell County Government Center on Dec 1st at 11am, Iredell Statesville School Board Member, Abby Trent, brought evidence to the Board of Elections to establish her voter registration address and took an oath that her move from 811 N. Mulberry Street is temporary and that she will be moving back. When? No one knows. It was discovered some time in November that her residence was vacant and put up for sale on October 27, 2023. Multiple listing sites showed a freshly painted, completely empty home and a For Sale sign was located in the yard. This was brought to the public’s attention at the ISS school board meeting on November 6th which began a chain of events. The listing was taken off the next day and Trent was on the deed by November 8th. A resident from district 3 subsequently challenged Trent’s eligibility to the Board of Elections and presented evidence at a preliminary hearing on November 17th which resulted in a full hearing.
The hearing began with the board’s motion to accept the evidence from the previous hearing. Evidence from Trent was passed out to each of the board members. During Trent’s sworn testimony, she stated that the house was mistakenly put up for sale by her grandfather who has early onset dementia. She claimed that she moved out in July due to repairs needed and that later mold was discovered. She referred to a letter from a contractor that recommended she move her furniture and belongings out. She explained that she has since moved into a property owned by her mother, Angela Matthews, with her fiancé and dogs, and her mail has been temporarily forwarded. Her belongings from the home are stored nearby in Matthews’ garage. Trent swore under oath that her intention has always been to move back in. Trent and Matthews claimed to have no knowledge that the home was listed for sale until it was brought up at the November 6th school board meeting. Evidence from Trent included letters from her grandfather and a contractor, as well as pictures of the repairs needed. Only Trent and Matthews were given the opportunity to speak and share evidence.
During testimony by Matthews, it was stated that the house has always been intended for Abby. Trent shared that the property had also been briefly put on the market in April of 2023, along with two other properties owned by the Wokatcshes. This was also described as a mistake made by the grandfather. According to public record and Trent’s testimony, the Wokatsches added Trent’s name to the deed on November 8th. Matthews was questioned if his dementia affected that decision. She responded that he has good days and bad days, and that she did not believe he was impaired when he signed the document to add Trent to the deed. It was discussed that, according to the contractor’s letter and timeline, it could be as long as one year before the repairs are completed. Trent is currently 8 months pregnant. Negotiations of who and how the repairs will be paid are allegedly still underway, and it was mentioned that there is still a mortgage on this property despite having been owned by the Wokatsches since 1992. The board unanimously voted to overturn the challenge citing that, according to the statute, if there is intent to move back in, she is still eligible to vote.
A citizen in attendance, Eyda Hernandez, approached the BoE chairman after the meeting adjourned and asked why there is no timeframe in the statute as to how long an elected official can live outside of the district. Ms. Hernandez is a retired realtor and emphasized that no realtor would sign a listing agreement with someone showing signs of dementia and that it is illegal to do so. The chairman agreed these were good questions to raise.
Further questions that have presented themselves following the testimony include; Why was no question raised from the BoE about the signatures on the listing agreement? Did they view the listing agreement? In North Carolina, it is required that all parties listed on the deed sign the listing agreement for a property to go on the market. Both of Trent’s grandparents were listed on the deed, so according to North Carolina law, they would have both needed to sign. Did Mrs Wokatsch sign the listing agreement? Were both listings, in April and again in October, enacted with only one signature? Does the realtor have any information to share about to whom he spoke and why the home was listed for sale? Why did the BoE, one of which is a realtor and another a real estate attorney, not think to ask these questions? For how long of a period is it acceptable for an elected official to not reside in their district? There are 10 days to appeal the decision of the Iredell Board of Elections to the Superior Court.
