Voter Guide

Want to see who’s on your NC ballot before voting? How to find a sample ballot online

North Carolina’s general election is Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024.
North Carolina’s general election is Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. cseward@newsobserver.com

This year’s general election will decide the fate of several key positions, and several North Carolina voters have already cast their ballots.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 5 but if you want to cast your ballot in person beforehand, the state’s early voting period runs Thursday, Oct. 17 through Saturday, Nov. 2.

Regardless of when you head to the polls, you do have the opportunity to take a peek at a sample ballot.

How to find your NC sample ballot

All registered North Carolina voters have access to a sample ballot through the North Carolina State Board of Elections’ Voter Search tool. These are usually available 50 days before Election Day during even numbered years, according to the NCSBE website.

For the voter search tool — which can be accessed online at vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup — you’ll enter your name, year of birth, your county and voter status. Along with a sample ballot, you’ll also be able to access your voter details, your jurisdictions, polling place, absentee ballot information and voter history.

You can also download a sample ballot for practice ahead of voting at the polls through the NC Absentee Ballot Portal online at votebymail.ncsbe.gov/app/home.

Voter guides with candidate information

Ahead of the general election, The News & Observer and The Charlotte Observer’s politics teams have compiled robust voter guides featuring candidate questionnaires for North Carolina races to help our readers make informed decisions when voting. The guides are free to use without a subscription.

To check out more information about the candidates you’ll find on your ballot, you can access voter guides for:

Note: We reached out to all candidates, but some didn’t respond, so they won’t appear in these guides. But all will still be listed at the top of each questionnaire.

You can also access the State Board of Elections’ candidate lists for voters, advocacy groups, political parties, candidates, and the public online at ncsbe.gov/results-data/candidate-lists.

Ask the North Carolina Service Journalism Team

Questions about life in North Carolina? Or have a tip or story idea you’d like to share? The service journalism teams at The News & Observer and The Charlotte Observer want to hear from you.

You can submit your question by filling out this form.

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This story was originally published October 21, 2024 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Want to see who’s on your NC ballot before voting? How to find a sample ballot online."

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Chyna Blackmon
The Charlotte Observer
Chyna Blackmon was a service journalism reporter for The Charlotte Observer. A native of the Carolinas, she grew up in Columbia, SC, and graduated from Queens University of Charlotte. She’s also worked in local television news in Charlotte, NC, and Richmond, VA. Support my work with a digital subscription
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