A procrastinator’s guide to NC voting: What to know about casting a ballot on Election Day
While many North Carolina voters have already cast their ballot, some may have waited until Election Day.
How to check NC voter registration
If you’re planning to vote Tuesday, Nov. 5, first make sure you are registered using the N.C. State Board of Elections’ Voter Search, available at vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup.
If you are not registered to vote, it is probably too late to register, though there are exceptions for some people.
Where is my assigned polling place?
The Voter Search also shows your assigned polling place. During early voting, all of a county’s polling sites were open to registered voters in their respective counties. But on Election Day, voters must cast ballots at a specific location.
That’s to ensure that voters receive a ballot that includes all races for which they are eligible to vote. Find your sample ballot using the Voter Search.
The News & Observer’s Voter Guide has information about each candidate for statewide races, N.C. House of Representatives, N.C. Senate and Wake County offices.
How to vote in person on Election Day in NC
Before you head to your assigned polling place, make sure you have valid photo ID with you because you will be asked to show it when you vote.
Polling sites are open 6:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. If you are in line at your assigned polling place by 7:30 p.m., you will be allowed to vote.
The busiest times at polling places tend to be early in the morning and shortly before polls close, according to the State Board of Elections. Voting in the middle of the day may result in shorter lines.
Some counties — Wake, Durham, Orange, Forsyth, Guilford, Cabarrus and Buncombe — let you check the wait time online.
Election Day forecast
Temperatures in the Triangle today are predicted to be in the low 60s in the morning and mid-70s around noon. The high temperature will be around 80 degrees, ABC11 meteorologist Robert Johnson told The News & Observer in a phone call Monday, Nov. 4. (ABC11 and The N&O are newsgathering partners.)
There will be a mix of sun and clouds throughout the day, with some patchy fog in the morning. Areas north of the Triangle may see dense fog, Johnson said.
What to do with mail-in ballots
If you have not voted and have not yet returned your mail-in absentee ballot, it is too late to mail it. You must return the ballot in person. (State law previously allowed for a grace period if ballots were postmarked on or before Election Day and received within three days after the election, but that is no longer in effect.)
Voters may return their ballot to their county board of elections office by 7:30 p.m. Election Day.
Wake County Board of Elections: 1200 N. New Hope Road in Raleigh
Durham County Board of Elections: 3825 S. Roxboro St. in Durham
Orange County Board of Elections: 208 S. Cameron St. in Hillsborough
- Chatham County Board of Elections: 984 Thompson St. in Pittsboro
- Johnston County Board of Elections: 205 S. Second St. in Smithfield
- Mecklenburg County Board of Elections: 741 Kenilworth Ave. in Charlotte
Voters are not allowed to return their ballot to a polling place on Election Day.
However, voters who requested an absentee ballot and haven’t returned it yet can head to the polls on Election Day and vote in-person instead. These voters can discard their absentee ballots and don’t need to bring it to the polling place.
If a voter is not able to drop off a completed ballot at their county board of elections office, someone else may deliver it for them. However, the person has to be the voter’s legal guardian or near relative.
