• The Primary is Tuesday.
More than 1,300 early ballots votes have been reported by the county board of elections, as of Tuesday (Feb. 27).
Of the 1,328 early voters so far, 639 were Democrats, 386 Republicans, and 323 Unaffiliated, along with a single Libertarian, according to state board of elections figures
Unaffiliated voters are allowed to vote in partisan primaries in North Carolina, but they must request a ballot from a party. Ballot requests were running close to even as of Tuesday, with 686 voters asking for a Democrat ballot and 662 Republican.
Countywide, female voters are turning out more than males. White voters are also going to the early polls in larger numbers than blacks, with 777 of the votes as of yesterday being cast by white voters. Black voters have cast 513 ballots, with 38 “undesignated,” 17 Native American. Asians and “other” races came in with two voters each.
Early polls for the March 5 primary are located at the county board of elections office in Whiteville; Ransom Events Center in Sandyfield; Fair Bluff Fire and Rescue building; Chadbourn Municipal Annex; and the Tabor City Courthouse.
The busiest polls so far have been the Board of Elections (710 voters); Ransom Center (241); Chadbourn (150); Tabor City courthouse (145); and Fair Bluff Fire Department
(72).
The polls are open 8 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. weekdays through March 1. The final day to cast an early vote is Saturday, March 2. Polls will be open that day from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m.
Voter identification is required for elections this year. A driver’s license, military ID card, or certified school or business ID may be used. Voters without ID cards can get a free special ID at the board of elections through March 1. Voters who prefer not to use an ID will be allowed to cast a provisional ballot, if they fill out and submit a voter exception form. IDs are only available at the elections office.
State officials said yesterday that results may be a little later than usual this year. In years past, early vote totals were counted before the end of voting on Election Day, a practice some critics said was open for abuse. Under the new state laws, the early poll ballots will not be tallied until after 7:30 p.m. on Election Night. State officials said that could cause delays of 30 minutes to more than an hour.
Call 640.6609 or go to https://www.ncsbe.gov/voting/upcoming-election for more information.
