You can now drive with an expired NC license. But can you vote with it?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- State Board of Elections unclear on whether voters can use two-year expired license.
- Currently, voter ID laws only accept licenses expired for less than one year.
- Lawmakers may revise ID rules ahead of elections, but legislative clarity is pending.
Drivers in North Carolina can now legally drive up to two years past the expiration of their license due to a new law in place until 2027. But will voters be able to use an expired license to vote?
The News & Observer received that question from a reader after reporting on Senate Bill 391, which gives drivers an extension on renewing their licenses in an attempt to reduce long waits at the Division of Motor Vehicles.
Patrick Gannon, North Carolina State Board of Elections public information director, said that the answer is currently unclear. Gannon said that he is in communication with legislative staff to find a solution.
It might take more legislation to provide clarity, which would need to come soon in time for upcoming elections. Five counties will hold partisan primaries in just eight weeks.
“It is definitely an issue,” state Rep. Pricey Harrison told The N&O. “We’ve got to address it.”
Under North Carolina voter ID laws, voters have to present an acceptable form of photo identification to cast a ballot. Voters are only allowed to use an expired driver’s license if it has been expired for a year or less. Citizens 65 and older are an exception to the rule — they may use an expired license as long as it was unexpired on their 65th birthday.
Harrison, a Guilford County Democrat, anticipates that the issue will be addressed in House Bill 958, which would tackle several laws surrounding elections. But the bill has provisions that could lead to a veto by Democratic Gov. Josh Stein.
The easiest way to alleviate the issue is to change the voter ID laws to allow unexpired licenses for up to two years, Harrison said.
The News & Observer tried to reach Sen. Michael Lazzara and Sen. Vickie Sawyer, who both chair the Senate Transportation Committee. Neither responded to a request for comment.
Acceptable forms of ID
Under state law, voters must present a photo ID at the polls. Absentee voters must also send a photocopy of their ID to vote by mail. These are among the acceptable forms of ID allowed up to one year after expiration.
- Driver’s license
- State-issued ID
- Passport or passport card
- Student ID approved by the State Board of Elections
- State employee ID approved by the State Board of Elections
- State board approved employee ID
- NC Voter ID card
Voters can obtain a North Carolina Voter ID card, which expires after 10 years, from their county board of elections.
Military or veteran ID cards, tribal enrollment cards and public assistance program ID cards with a photo are all accepted regardless of expiration date.
If a voter arrives at the polls without any form of identification, there are alternate methods that allow them to vote, like an ID Exception Form. The exception form asks voters to disclose the reason that they do not have a photo ID. The listed exceptions include a religious objection to being photographed, having experienced a natural disaster in the last 100 days, or otherwise having a “reasonable impediment.”
These voters would be allowed to vote via provisional ballot. A provisional ballot is given to citizens whose eligibility to vote is unclear. They can be issued for a host of reasons, including if a person casts a vote at the wrong precinct or if a voter has had an unreported address change.
Provisional ballots do have a high rate of being tossed out in North Carolina, especially for young voters.
