Fact check: Will absentee ballots be dropped off ‘anonymously’ in NC?

The issue: Several lawsuits currently playing out in North Carolina courts seek to give voters the option to drop their absentee ballot into a box at one-stop early voting locations or at county board offices. It’s an attempt to minimize COVID-19 exposure and maximize voter turnout. But a settlement of one of those lawsuits that aims to change the identity verification process for ballot drop-offs has received pushback from elections board members and state lawmakers.

The proposed settlement, now tied up in the courts, suggests enacting a minor change that would allow the voter to verbally give their name to an elections board employee, instead of using a pen other people might have used. But Republicans are concerned about wording within the settlement that says votes left in unmonitored dropboxes would still be counted.

Why we’re checking this: Many people in North Carolina are considering how to vote while protecting themselves from COVID-19.

Some will vote by mail. Others may want to avoid any possible mail glitches and drop off their absentee ballot instead of mailing it. But North Carolina doesn’t offer dropboxes where a voter could drop in a ballot without any interaction with another person. Such boxes would be convenient, but could also keep officials from knowing whether someone handled a ballot who shouldn’t have.

Republicans are suggesting the settlement would bypass that restriction and invite fraud. We wanted to check it out.

What you need to know:

Currently, it is not North Carolina protocol to accept ballots left in dropboxes. But if a vote is found in a dropbox, it may be counted toward the election because of language in a 2018 rule. The settlement has similar language to that rule.

Pat Ryan, a spokesperson for NC Senate leader Phil Berger, said in an interview with The News & Observer that the settlement proposal, if enacted, would leave board staff members unable to identify those dropping off votes in dropboxes. That could lead to an increased risk of election fraud of the kind seen in the 2018 congressional race in the 9th District.

Ryan said that what happened in 2018 might not have been discovered if it wasn’t for the identity verification process of those dropping off absentee ballots, and he fears it could happen again this election season if votes left in dropboxes still count — even if the person dropping them off hasn’t been identified.

“Our issue is that there is no way for the board of elections to follow state law if they are counting ballots found in anonymous drop boxes,” Ryan said. “It is entirely inappropriate for the board of elections to change election rules after voting has already started.”

Laura Brewer, spokesperson in the N.C. attorney general’s office, said in an interview with The News & Observer that there will be no unmonitored dropboxes; therefore, complete anonymity of those dropping of ballots would be impossible. All people dropping off absentee ballots at polling sites will be identified and documented, she said.

“There are collection sites that are manned by board staff, who interact with each person who drops off a ballot, allowing board staff to interact verbally and log the appropriate information,” Brewer said. “This is a minor accommodation to preserve health and safety during the pandemic.”

Earlier this year, some county election offices had outdoor dropboxes installed when they were closed due to COVID-19 that allowed voters to drop off their registration forms. Now, if a dropbox is still in use, it is required to have a sign alerting voters that they cannot leave their ballot in the box and that they must go inside to complete the absentee voting process.

Republicans say ballot “harvesters” might ignore that requirement and leave completed ballots in the boxes, and that the settlement might require them to be counted.

In fact, language in the 2018 rule indicates that leaving a vote in a dropbox does not require it to be omitted from the election count.

The rule states, “Failure to comply with this Rule shall not constitute evidence sufficient in and of itself to establish that the voter did not lawfully vote his or her ballot.”

Ryan noted that a 2019 law made it illegal for anyone but the voter or voter’s close relative to return an absentee ballot. He said that counting votes, like ones left in dropboxes, where the voter or voter’s close relative haven’t been identified contradicts and violates this law

Brewer said if further evidence is identified that indicates a problem with the ballot, there are steps that can be taken that allow it to be challenged.

“This is not a difference in policy or process, but a difference in how the information is provided to make it safer for people to vote.” Brewer said.

Patrick Gannon, a spokesman for the State Board of Elections, said in an interview with The News & Observer that he could not discuss details about the settlement due to ongoing litigation.

Pat Ryan phone interview, Oct. 8

Laura Brewer email, Oct. 6

Patrick Gannon email, Oct. 7 & Oct. 9

Consent Judgment 20-CVS-881, Sept. 22

Session Law 2019-239 Senate Bill 683, Nov. 2019

NCAC 18 .0102, in-person return of absentee ballots, Dec. 2018

This story was produced by The News & Observer Fact-Checking Project, which shares fact-checks with newsrooms statewide. It was edited by politics editor Jordan Schrader and managing editor Jane Elizabeth. Submit a suggestion for what we should check, or a comment or suggestion about our fact-checking, at bit.ly/nandofactcheck.