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The Daily Tar Heel

Letter: A voting guide for the UNC community

TO THE EDITOR:

Important tips for voting in the March 15 NC primary:

1) If you registered in Orange County in a prior year and are still in the county, you can vote. Voters who registered this year are of course eligible too (Almost 6,700 new voters signed up in Orange County this academic year, 65 percent who are under age 30). Address changes within Orange County can be reported at early voting.

2) Voter ID is in effect for the primary; eligible documents are N.C. drivers license (address does not need to be correct), passport, NCDMV non-operator ID, military ID and Veteran’s ID. An out-of-state driver’s license can be used if you have been registered to vote in NC less than 90 days.

3) If you are unable to obtain an acceptable photo ID due to a reasonable impediment you can still vote a provisional ballot at the polls. (Examples of a reasonable impediment include but are not limited to the lack of proper documents, family obligations, transportation problems, work schedule, illness or disability.) You will be required to sign a declaration describing the impediment, and provide your date of birth and last four digits of your Social Security number. You will vote a ballot which will still be counted.

4) The primary is on March 15 during spring break, so if you will be out of town early voting March 3 through 12 is your best bet.

5) You can also vote by mail in the county of your voter registration (including Orange County). Your absentee application is due by 5 p.m. on March 8, you can print a form at ncsbe.gov (look for absentee ballot request form on lower right) and fill out and sign then snail mail, FAX, or attach to an email. You may have received a state voter guide in the U.S. Mail a few weeks ago which has an absentee application in it.

6) Early voting is at six locations in Orange County, including Chapel of the Cross next to Morehead Planetarium on East Franklin Street, Carrboro Town Hall on West Main Street and Seymour Center on Homestead Road. Hours beginning Thursday March 3 are Monday through Friday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturdays 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

7) Voting hours in your precinct on primary day are 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

8) There are four primary ballots available: Democratic, Republican, Libertarian and nonpartisan. Those affiliated with one of the three parties will get that ballot (which includes the CONNECT NC bond issue), unaffiliated voters can choose one of the three party ballots when checking in to vote, or just vote the non-partisan ballot which only has the bond issue on it.

9) As of this writing, persons not yet registered to vote in Orange County can register to vote at early voting and then immediately cast a ballot. This is called same-day registration. Anyone using same-day registration needs to have evidence of their current address. For UNC dorm residents, UNC has supplied a dorm roster at the Chapel of the Cross, Carrboro Town and Seymour Center early vote sites which satisfies that requirement. Off-campus and Granville residents can use one of the following that has their name and address: current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document, any of which can be shown on your smartphone to the election official if you don’t have a printed copy. You also need to satisfy the Photo ID requirements set out above when you vote after registering.

Gerry Cohen

Former Chapel Hill Town Council member

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