Some important election deadlines are coming up.
The North Carolina regular voter registration deadline is Friday, Oct. 9 at 5 p.m. The State Board of Elections website is your one-stop shop for voting information. Under “register to vote,” you can check your North Carolina registration. If you have an N.C. driver's license and need to register to vote or update your voter address within the same county or a different county, you can do it online. If you don’t have a North Carolina license, print out a voter registration form and mail it to your county board of elections — but it must be postmarked by Oct. 9.
You can apply online to vote by mail. The deadline to request your absentee ballot is 5 p.m. on Oct. 27. If you have an absentee ballot from North Carolina or another state, it must be returned by Election Day — but the sooner the better.
Nov. 3 is simply the last day of an 18-day voting period. North Carolina has early voting from Oct. 15 through Oct. 31. The majority of counties have early voting on three Saturdays and two Sundays, as well as 12 weekday evenings. You can vote at any early voting site in your county of voter registration. While you can register to vote at early voting sites, it’s more difficult than registering by the Oct. 9 deadline.
Orange County has six early voting sites, including Chapel of the Cross on East Franklin Street next to the Morehead Planetarium, Carrboro Town Hall on West Main Street, and University Mall on Estes Drive. Early voting will take place from Oct. 15 through Oct. 31 from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. weekdays, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. If you are already registered to vote in Orange County but have moved, early voting is the best time to update your voter registration address.
On Election Day, vote at your assigned precinct from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Gerry Cohen
Member, Wake County Board of Elections
