Want to vote in person and early in North Carolina? Here’s what you need to know.
This fall, North Carolina’s more than 7 million voters will chose candidates for president, U.S. Senate, governor, several statewide offices, the entire General Assembly and local races.
There are three ways to vote in the November election in North Carolina: in-person early, in-person on Election Day or by mail-in absentee ballot. If you want to vote early, here’s everything you need to know about what to do, where to go, and what precautions are in place to protect against COVID-19.
What’s early voting?
Early voting, also known as one-stop early voting, is going in person to cast a ballot at an early voting site between Oct. 15 and Oct. 31.
What safety precautions against COVID-19 are in place?
Early voting sites will enforce six feet of social distancing as you wait in line and will have hand sanitizer and masks for voters if you forgot to bring your own.
The election workers will also wear masks, along with other protective equipment like gloves and face shields. There will be barriers between those workers and voters when you check in at a table, according to the State Board of Elections.
Surfaces will also be cleaned, and if your county hand-marks paper ballots, there will be single-use pens, and Q-tips for those who use ballot-marking devices, according to the BOE.
Do I need to wear a mask?
Yes. There is a statewide mask mandate in North Carolina.
Will the lines be long?
Maybe. You might want to bring a book to read while you wait. You can also check out the News & Observer interactive online voter guide, which includes candidate questionnaires for key races.
Do I vote at my designated precinct?
For early voting, there are multiple locations in your county. You can cast your ballot at any early voting site in the county where you live.
So where do I early vote?
Your county has designated early voting sites. You can look up on the North Carolina Board of Elections website where early voting locations are for your county here: vt.ncsbe.gov/ossite/. Just enter your county, and there will be a map with different early voting locations near you. Click on each one to see the hours they are open.
So when do I vote at my precinct?
You vote at your precinct if you are voting on Election Day. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. For early voting, you vote at a designated early voting site.
Is there curbside voting during early voting?
Yes, early voting sites will have curbside voting to assist with anyone who is not able to enter the building without physical assistance because of age or disability. That includes people who have a medical condition that puts them a risk of COVID-19 or if they should not wear a mask because of a condition or disability. It also includes anyone who has COVID-19 symptoms.
What kind of ballots do we cast?
North Carolina voters use paper ballots to provide “a paper trail of all votes cast that can be audited or recounted by elections officials,” according to the state board.
You can find out more about the voting equipment at ncsbe.gov/voting/voting-equipment.
I don’t want to early vote. What are my other options?
You can vote by absentee ballot, through the mail. More information about that here: ncsbe.gov/voting/vote-mail. You can also go vote on Election Day, Nov. 3 at your designated precinct, between 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. You can look up your Election Day polling place here: vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/.
When does early voting start?
Thursday, Oct. 15.
When does it end?
Saturday, Oct. 31.
Can I vote anytime, every day?
Each early voting site has designated hours.
I forgot to early vote. Now what?
You can go vote in-person on Election Day, Nov. 3, at your precinct. The same safety precautions against COVID-19 will be in place.
Who’s running again?
Check out our interactive voter guide for key races. Go to either the News & Observer voter guide at newsobserver.com/voter-guide, the Charlotte Observer voter guide at charlotteobserver.com/voter-guide or the Herald-Sun voter guide at heraldsun.com/voter-guide.
You can also look up your sample ballot on the Board of Elections site: vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/.
I have more questions.
Visit the North Carolina State Board of Elections website at https://www.ncsbe.gov/.
For more North Carolina government and politics news, listen to the Domecast politics podcast from The News & Observer and the NC Insider. You can find it on Megaphone, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts.
This story was originally published September 24, 2020 at 12:55 PM with the headline "Want to vote in person and early in North Carolina? Here’s what you need to know.."
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