On a sweltering August morning in North Carolina, a story broke that sent shockwaves through the state’s political and electoral circles. James Yokeley Jr., the recently appointed chairman of the Surry County Board of Elections, resigned his post after being arrested and charged with contaminating food with a controlled substance, felony child abuse, and possession of illegal narcotics. The allegations, which center on Yokeley’s own family, have raised uncomfortable questions about trust, accountability, and the intersection of personal conduct with public service.
The incident unfolded on August 8, 2025, when Yokeley, 66, flagged down a police officer at a Sheetz gas station in Wilmington, North Carolina. According to Wilmington Police, Yokeley reported that his two granddaughters had found hard objects in their Dairy Queen ice cream, purchased just a few miles away. Medical personnel were called to the scene and determined that the girls had not ingested the substances—a fortunate detail in an otherwise alarming episode. But the story quickly took a darker turn. Officers collected the objects, which were described as small blue pills, and a preliminary field test indicated they contained illegal narcotics: specifically, cocaine and MDMA, also known as ecstasy or molly, as reported by CBS affiliate WGHP and confirmed by police statements cited by NBC News and other outlets.
Police opened an investigation and reviewed surveillance footage from the Dairy Queen. The video, according to Wilmington Police and corroborated by multiple media reports, showed Yokeley himself placing the pills into the ice cream intended for his granddaughters. At the time, he was acting as the girls’ guardian for the weekend. Police have not shared a possible motive, and the investigation remains ongoing. Yokeley was arrested on August 26 and transported to the New Hanover County Detention Center, where he was held on a $100,000 secured bond before posting bail.
The charges leveled against Yokeley are grave: contaminating food or drink with a controlled substance, felony child abuse inflicting serious physical injury, and felony possession of a Schedule I narcotic. According to the Carolina Journal and other sources, the blue pressed pills tested positive for both cocaine and MDMA. The substances were sent to the State Lab for further analysis, but the initial field tests left little doubt about their nature.
Yokeley’s arrest immediately drew the attention of state officials. State Auditor Dave Boliek, who had appointed Yokeley to the Surry County Board of Elections in June 2025, called the allegations “very disturbing.” In a statement, Boliek said, “This matter distracts from election management in Surry County and must be addressed quickly and directly. Our office is built on holding individuals accountable. He needs to resign, and Surry County needs a new Board of Elections Chair. If he doesn’t resign, I’ll be requesting the State Board take action today to remove him as Chair.” Boliek’s office had been given the authority to appoint elections board leaders in all 100 North Carolina counties under a recent state law, which also shifted the majority on state and local elections boards to the Republican Party.
Yokeley, for his part, maintained his innocence. In his resignation letter, which was obtained by WFMY News 2 and other outlets, he wrote, “After much prayer, thoughtful reflection and consultation, I have concluded that it is in the best interest of the State Board of Elections and the Surry County Board of Elections, regarding my own falsely accused circumstances, to step down at this time. Based on the truth and facts, I remain prayerfully confident that I will be exonerated of all accusations levied against me.” He added, “During my tenure serving on the Surry County Board of Elections, I have been honored to serve a board guided by fairness, integrity, and a steadfast commitment to the Constitutional Republic process.”
The timing of Yokeley’s resignation was striking. He submitted his letter at approximately 11:44 a.m. on August 28, 2025, just before a special-called State Board of Elections meeting was set to address his case. The State Board confirmed the resignation in a news release and canceled the emergency meeting. Boliek responded with a statement: “As I had called for, the Chair of the Surry County Board of Elections has resigned. With his resignation, the Surry County Board and State Board can now, without distraction, move forward with the process of appointing a replacement.” According to the State Board, the next chair will be selected after receiving two nominations from the North Carolina Republican Party.
Yokeley’s tenure in public service had been relatively brief but not without controversy. He was first appointed to the Surry County Board of Elections as a member in July 2023 and became chair in June 2025. Prior to his role on the board, Yokeley ran for a seat on the Surry County Board of Education in 2022, finishing third in the Republican primary. During that campaign, he was known for expressing skepticism about national Covid policies and questioning the validity of 2020 election results. After the election, he continued to use his campaign’s social media accounts to advocate anti-vaccine positions, at times citing Children’s Health Defense, a group led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Yokeley’s posts included unsubstantiated claims that Covid vaccines had “caused more adverse effects and deaths than all previous vaccines combined,” a statement contradicted by extensive scientific research showing that Covid vaccines are overwhelmingly safe and effective.
The incident has sparked a wave of concern about oversight and accountability in North Carolina’s election administration. The new state law that placed Boliek in charge of appointments was intended to streamline leadership and ensure partisan balance, but the rapid unraveling of Yokeley’s chairmanship has prompted scrutiny from multiple quarters. The State Board of Elections has pledged to move forward with the appointment of a new chair, emphasizing the importance of restoring public confidence and ensuring that election management in Surry County proceeds without further distraction.
As the investigation continues, questions remain about the circumstances leading up to the alleged crime and the broader implications for election oversight in North Carolina. For now, the state’s election officials are focused on a smooth transition, while the community grapples with the fallout from a case that has left many stunned—and searching for answers.
