More than half a million people in North Carolina have voted in person in two days
More than 320,000 votes were cast in person in North Carolina on Friday, the second day that polls were open for early voting.
The total number of votes cast in person was at 656,710, according to the N.C. State Board of Elections. That includes the ballots from people who stood outside in the rain Friday and those who lined up before sunrise and waited hours to vote on Thursday.
More than 1 million votes cast
In addition to early votes cast in person, 592,176 absentee ballots had been cast as of Saturday morning.
That brings the total number of votes cast to nearly 1.25 million, more than 17% of the state’s registered voters.
In Wake County, 149,795 votes were cast in early voting as of Saturday morning and about 54,000 have been cast in person.
In Durham County, 27,265 votes have been cast in person. In Orange County, 8,863 votes have been cast in person.
How to make sure your vote is counted
The early voting period lasts until Oct. 31. For early voting, there are multiple locations in your county. Check out this map (vt.ncsbe.gov/ossite/) of early voting sites. You can vote at any early voting site in the county where you live.
Early voting sites will have curbside voting available for anyone who cannot enter the building because of age, disability, medical condition that puts them at heightened risk of COVID-19, or symptoms of COVID-19.
If you prefer to vote by mail, you have 10 days left to request an absentee ballot. The Board of Elections must receive your request by 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 27.
Once you’ve sent your ballot in, you can track it with a new app called BallotTrax. More information is at northcarolina.ballottrax.net.
Check out The N&O’s voter guide to view your ballot and to compare candidates’ positions.
COVID-19 safety at the polls
Early voting sites will enforce six feet of social distancing as you wait in line and will have hand sanitizer and masks available for voters.
Voters are “strongly encouraged” to wear masks but will not be turned away if they are not wearing one, according to a June memo from the State Board of Elections.
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.
This story was originally published October 17, 2020 at 1:24 PM.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story stated the wrong number of votes cast in person in North Carolina on Friday.
