FAQs

As counties process absentee ballots and find deficiencies, they contact voters to inform them that their ballot was not filled out correctly and how the problem may be fixed or “cured.” NC has a “cure process” in place this year so that in some circumstances voters can validate their ballot without having to submit a new ballot.

A voter who, due to a disability, needs assistance placing their ballot in the closest mailbox may receive assistance by anyone not disqualified from assisting the voter.

If you wait until Election Day to mail the envelope, go inside the post office and get it hand-postmarked by the clerk. Mail dropped in a blue box or put in your mailbox often does not receive a postmark. You can also submit your ballot in person at your COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS.  You CANNOT submit your absentee ballot to an election day polling place.  Your ballot must be postmarked by Election Day, and it must be received by 5 PM on the Friday after Election Day.

A candidate may not serve as a witness unless the candidate is the voter’s near relative.

Employees of a facility may not serve as a witness for voters in a facility. See the instructions included with the absentee ballot for a complete list of individuals prohibited from serving as witnesses for voters in a facility.

Vote by Mail with or Without ID

Due to an April 2023 ruling by the NC Supreme Court, you must now include a photocopy of an acceptable ID inside the “photo envelope” that will come with your ballot. However, if you do not have an acceptable form of ID, you can complete an ID Exception Form and submit it with your ballot (see acceptable ID exceptions here).

The facility or facility staff member may provide BLANK absentee ballot request forms but may NOT assist the voter or return a voter’s request form.

The State Board of Elections has not yet posted the Absentee Request Form in Spanish. Check back soon to see if the updated form has been posted.

You will not receive a confirmation mailing from your County Board of Elections if your application is accepted. You will only hear back if your application needs to be corrected or was rejected.  You can check the status of your request form by contacting your County Board of Elections or online using Ballottrax.

The NC State Board of Elections offers a tool to track your ballot called Ballottrax. You can track your ballot from when your county board of elections sends it to you through when your completed ballot is received by election officials.

Click here to track your absentee ballot. 

You are not required to vote by mail (even if you request an absentee ballot). As long as you have not returned your absentee ballot, you can still vote in person during Early Voting or on Election Day. But you cannot vote in person after your absentee ballot has been returned.

It is NOT currently possible to vote absentee online.  You can download and complete the absentee request form digitally with a digital signature and email it to your County Board of Elections.

Voters can submit online requests for absentee ballots through the North Carolina State Board of Elections online portal.

Your absentee ballot will be mailed to you, and the paper ballot must be returned in the accompanying envelope in-person or by mail to your County Board of Elections or dropped off in-person at an early voting site during the early voting period.

A blind or visually impaired voter may submit a ballot through an online portal.

If you have access to a computer, you can download and complete the form digitally with a digital signature and email it to your County Board of Elections. The signature must
be unique to the voter and must be readable. Voters may use a pen, or their finger, stylus, or mouse for the signature if they have the capability. Voters may not use a service such as
DocuSign that inserts a typed or cursive font signature that is not made by the voter.

Alternatively, voters can pick up blank copies at their County Board of Elections office or may call the North Carolina State Board of Elections or their County Board of Elections and request a blank absentee ballot request form be sent to them by mail, e-mail, or fax.

Voters can submit online requests for absentee ballots through the North Carolina State Board of Elections online portal.

When thinking about who can “help” a voter with their absentee form, it’s important to distinguish “helping” (Explaining how to complete the form, sending voters a blank form, etc.) versus “assisting” (a legal definition that means physically completing the form on behalf of the voter — i.e., not simply distributing, explaining, setting up an online submission, etc.).

Absentee Ballot Request Form Completion & Helping
Anyone can show a voter how to use anyone’s cell phone to request a ballot, for example: (1) BY OPENING THE STATE BOARD’S PORTAL to electronically fill out, sign, and submit a request; or (2) by demonstrating how to take a  cellphone photo of the voter’s completed paper request form and how to send by email to the appropriate county board.

• Unless qualified to assist a voter, a helper must not fill out the form, in part or whole, or hit send.
  

• The helper may photograph the request form, upload the photo to an email, type in the election board’s email address, and set up the submission or open the State Board’s portal, BUT the voter must hit Send or Submit.

• It is important to include a phone number on the form in case something is blurry or hard to read.

• Anyone can mass distribute BLANK request forms through mailings, hand distribution, emails/tweets/etc. with links to the form or with an attachment. Forms distributed in mass cannot be partially filled out, for example, with the voter’s name and address.

• Anyone can provide mass instructions for completing and submitting an absentee ballot request during a meeting, webinar, Zoom, website video, etc.

Who is qualified to assist a voter by mail? 

A voter’s near relative or legal guardian may assist the voter to complete the absentee ballot request form and absentee ballot. A near relative is: your spouse, brother, sister, parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, mother-in-law, father-in-law, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, stepparent, or stepchild. If a near relative or legal guardian is not available, any voter may receive assistance from another individual to complete the ballot, but only voters with a disability (including language difficulty) may receive assistance from another person to complete the request form. The assistant must sign and date the certificate in the proper place on the request form and absentee ballot envelope.

A person who assists a voter with completing their ballot may also serve as a witness. Voters should ensure that anyone assisting and witnessing a ballot is eligible to do so. This means the witness/assistant is over 18 years old and is not a candidate for office (unless the candidate is the voter’s near relative).

There are additional restrictions on who may assist and serve as a witness for voters who are patients in a facility that provides residential or in-patient health care (such as an assisted living facility or hospital). For these voters:

• If a near relative or legal guardian is not available, a voter in a facility may also request assistance from a Multipartisan Assistance Team (MAT). MATs can help voters complete their absentee ballots, and can also serve as a witness. Call your county board of elections to request MAT assistance. Look up your county BOE here.
• If neither a voter’s near relative nor verifiable legal guardian is available, and a MAT is not available within seven calendar days of a telephonic request for assistance, the voter may obtain assistance from anyone who is not (1) an owner, manager, director, or employee of the Facility; (2) an elected official; (3) a candidate for office; or (4) an officeholder in a political party or a campaign manager or treasurer for a candidate or political party. The voter may also not have anyone in categories (1) – (4) witness their absentee ballot.

Important: Only you (the voter), your legal guardian, or your near relative may return your absentee ballot, for example, to a county BOE, or Early Voting location. However, if you require assistance due to a disability in mailing your envelope containing your executed absentee ballot, you may direct that the sealed envelope be taken directly to the closest U.S. mail depository or mailbox by a person selected by the voter.  

Any North Carolina registered voter may request and receive a mail-in “absentee” ballot. No special circumstance is needed.

Uniformed service members and U.S. citizens living outside of the country may request absentee ballots under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA). For more UOCAVA information, go to FVAP.GOV.

If you can’t make it to the polls in person, you have the option to send your vote via mail using an absentee ballot.

To request an absentee ballot, you or a near relative or legal guardian must submit an ABSENTEE BALLOT REQUEST FORM to your COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS (be sure the request is signed). This request must be received at the County Board’s office at least 7 days before Election Day, by 5 PM.

CLICK HERE FOR: HOW TO VOTE THROUGH THE MAIL WITH AN ABSENTEE BALLOT.

(1) Obtain a Voter Registration Form.  You can use any one of the ways below to get a registration form to fill out and submit 25 days before election day to have it count in time for the upcoming election:

• Download a registration form and mail it to your County Board of Elections at least 25 days before the election you want to vote in.
• Visit your county Board of Elections during regular business hours to register.
• You can also obtain a voter registration form at any public library – local policies vary on whether they will turn the form in or if you need to turn it in yourself.
• If you are a student, be aware that high schools are required under state law (NC General Statute 163-82.23) to have registration forms for you to use.
• Obtain a registration form at your local Department of Social Services or public health office.
• Register to vote at any Division of Motor Vehicles office when you apply for a new or renewed driver’s license.
• Register during a voter registration drive. The person taking your completed form must submit it at least 25 days before the next election. They may not pre-mark the form with a party affiliation or destroy the form if they don’t like your choice of party affiliation.

(2) Complete the Form. Before you turn in your registration form, review it carefully. Be sure you sign and date it, fill in all the questions, including your date of birth, and check all the appropriate boxes. Spell out your name as it appears on the identity document whose number you provide in Section 3. If you do not give your NC driver’s license number or the last 4 digits of your Social Security number, be sure to provide the documents requested on the form, or be prepared to show one of those documents when you first vote in person. Include a phone number on the form; it’s used by election officials to call you for missing information.

If you have trouble understanding the form, review this tip sheet or call your County Board of Elections.

(3) Submit the Form. There are several ways to submit a Voter Registration Form before the 25-days deadline before the election you want to vote in

• Submit the form in person (during regular business hours) or by mail to your County Board of Elections at least 25 days before the election you want to vote in.
• Submit the form at any Division of Motor Vehicles office when you apply for a new or renewed driver’s license.
• IF you register during a voter registration drive, the person taking your completed form must submit it at least 25 days before the next election.

REMEMBER! You must submit the form at least 25 days before the election you want to vote in. If you don’t make this deadline, you should use Same-Day Registration during Early Voting.

The request form will ask for your North Carolina driver’s license or DMV identity card ID number or, in the alternative, the last four digits of your Social Security number. If you do not have access to these numbers, you should contact your County Board of Elections for guidance.

After about two or three weeks, you should receive a voter registration card in the mail with the name and location of your voting precinct and polling place. You do not need to show this card when you vote. If you have not received your card within three weeks of registering, you should call your County Board of Elections and make sure your voter registration form is being processed.

To avoid problems when you vote, you should fill out a new voter registration form if:

• You change your address.
• You change your name.
• You change your party affiliation.

If you are changing your address to a new county, be sure to provide your previous address or at least the old county in the appropriate section of the registration form in order to cancel your prior registration. Also fill out this section if you are changing any other information, including your name or your party affiliation. It helps to change your registration as soon as possible. Your county Board of Elections depends on an accurate count of voters in each precinct to plan staffing – clean voters rolls can mean shorter lines at the polls.

You may update some information on Election Day if you are registered in the county, as well as make changes using Same-Day Registration.

You can use any one of the ways below to get a registration form to fill out and submit 25 days before election day to have it count in time for the upcoming election:

• Download a registration form and mail it to your county Board of Elections at least 25 days before the election you want to vote in.
• Visit your county Board of Elections during regular business hours to register OR
• You can also obtain a voter registration form at any public library – local policies vary on whether they will turn the form in or if you need to turn it in yourself.
• If you are a student, be aware that high schools are required under state law (NC General Statute 163-82.23) to have registration forms for you to use.
• Obtain a registration form at your local Department of Social Services or public health office.
• Register to vote at any Division of Motor Vehicles office when you apply for a new or renewed driver’s license.
• Register during a voter registration drive. The person taking your completed form must submit it at least 25 days before the next election. They may not pre-mark the form with a party affiliation or destroy the form if they don’t like your choice of party affiliation.

To verify your identity, you must provide your birth date and your NC driver’s license (or DMV non-operator’s ID card) number, if you have one. If not, provide the last four digits of your Social Security number. If you do not have a SSN or NC license, you will need to present another form of identification, either when you mail in the form or when you first vote. Acceptable forms of ID include (1) a photo ID from any business, government, or nonprofit (including a student ID), or (2) any one of the following documents, with your name and current residential address:

• A utility bill from an electric, water, gas, phone, or cable company.
• A bank statement or bank-card statement.
• A paycheck or pay stub.
• Any license, registration, permit, invoice, check, letter, or any other document from a local, state, or federal government agency.

⚠️ NOTE: Intentionally lying on a voter registration form is a felony – do not give incorrect information.

In March 2020, North Carolina joined 38 other states in offering online voter registration (OVR). OVR is available now through the NC DMV website. To use this service, you must have a North Carolina driver’s license or DMV-issued ID card. While this method of registration won’t help all eligible voters, it’s a huge step forward for voter registration and is especially necessary at this time.

To register online, follow these five steps or watch the How-To Video: 

1. Visit payments.ncdot.gov
2. Select Continue as a guest. 
3. Click Submit a voter registration application. 
4. Enter your North Carolina Driver’s License or DMV-issued ID Card number, Social Security number (SSN), and date of birth.
5. You can register to vote, update your address, or change party affiliation. Updated information ONLY applies to your voter registration, not your ID — meaning you can register to vote at your current residence and it does not need to match the address on your current ID.

NOTE: The online platform does not allow users to make a name change.

REMEMBER! If you DO NOT have an NC license or ID card or wish to make a name change, complete and return the voter registration form to your county Board of Election office (more on that below). Not sure if you are registered at your current address? look up your registration.*

*Still not sure if you’re registered to vote? No problem! There’s no harm in registering to vote again at the same address.

You can register to vote at any time, but if you want your registration to count in time for an upcoming election, you have two options.

(1) Regular Voter Registration Deadline – Generally, your registration form must be postmarked or delivered to your COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS at least 25 days before the election in which you want to vote.

(2) Same-Day Registration during Early Voting – If you miss the 25-day registration deadline, you can use Same-Day Registration during Early Voting at any Early Voting site in your county.

⚠️ You can NOT register and vote on the same day on Election Day.

To use Same-Day Registration during Early Voting, you must provide one of the following documents to an election official at an Early Voting location:

• NC driver’s license
• Other government photo ID with name and current address
• Utility bill, bank statement, or payroll stub with name and current address
• Student photo ID with a school document showing the student’s address
• Any document from any government agency with the voter’s name and current address.

A person convicted of a felony temporarily loses his or her citizenship rights in North Carolina. But you automatically get your rights back after you finish your felony sentence, including any time on probation or parole.

You do not need a special document saying your rights are restored. You just register to vote like any other citizen. If you were registered before your conviction, you will need to register again.

An outstanding payment of restitution or a civil fine does not affect your voting rights.

If you are awaiting trial or if you are serving a misdemeanor sentence, you do not lose your right to vote, even if you are in jail.

If you are in jail, put an address on the registration form where your mail will be accepted and received. (If the Board of Elections’ mail to you is returned as undeliverable, you may not be able to vote.) List that address as your residential and mailing address, even if it is in a different county from the jail, and mail your registration form to the Board of Elections in that county. This is the same Board where you will send your Absentee Ballot request form when the time comes to vote.

As an alternative, you can use the jail’s address where you receive mail and mail your completed registration form to the Board of Elections in the same county as the jail; this is the same Board where you will send your Absentee Ballot request form when the time comes to vote.

Your voter registration card will be mailed to the address that you put down as your mailing address. If you have not received a voting card within three weeks, you can search your registration status online or contact your County Board of Elections. You will vote by following the directions for using an absentee ballot in the county where you mailed your registration form.

Under NC law, where you vote depends on where you call “home.” You have two choices if you are a student who has moved away to attend school and has no firm intention to return to a certain address after graduation:

• You can declare your old address (probably a parent’s address) as your home because that’s where you return periodically; in that case, you may register and vote in your old hometown.
• Or you can declare your new address as your home because that’s where you return day after day. In that case, you may register and vote in your new town.

You have to choose: It’s a serious crime to vote in two places in the same election. If you are already registered to vote in your hometown and now live in another community, you can vote by mail by requesting an absentee ballot or you can take advantage of early voting on a trip home during the Early Voting period. If you want to register or change your registration to a new address, follow the guidelines above in the 2 Options to Register to Vote section.

In NC, a 16 or 17-year-old may pre-register, and their registration will become fully effective when they reach the appropriate age to vote.

Use the same registration form to register or to pre-register to vote. Carefully and legibly fill out each section. Include a phone number so an elections official can reach you if something needs to be clarified. Be sure to check the citizenship box correctly, sign the form, and include your date of birth and an identifying number (NC driver’s license number or last 4 digits of your Social Security number).

You do not have to register again each time you vote. You only need to register again if you move, change your name, or after you finish a felony sentence (including any probation or parole; simply having an outstanding restitution payment, similar to a civil fine, does not affect your right to vote).

To register to vote, you must be:

1. A U.S. citizen
2. At least 18 years old by Election Day*
3. A resident of the county for at least 30 days before Election Day
4. A person who is not currently in jail or prison for a felony sentence. **

* A 17-year-old may register and vote in the Primary if he or she will be 18 on the day of the General Election.  Pre-registration is also available for 16 and 17 year-olds. Complete the regular voter registration form and submit it to your county Board of Elections. The registration will be held in a queue and automatically processed when the voter turns of age.

** If you have been convicted of a felony (in NC or anywhere else), you are eligible to register in North Carolina as soon as you complete your sentence (including any probation or parole). Simply having an outstanding restitution payment, similar to a civil fine, does not affect your right to vote.

Students or members of the military living away from home and people in jail on misdemeanor charges or awaiting a felony sentence are all eligible to register to vote.

Use the State Board of Elections voter search engine to see if you are on NC’s voter rolls. Type your first and last name as you think they appear on the registration form; don’t include a middle initial or birth year. You can also type part of a name with an asterisk; for example, Kath* will find Kathy, Katherine, Kathleen, Kathryn, etc. Check the box “I’m not a robot” and hit “Search.” Then select the blue name that’s you. If you don’t find yourself, go back and check the box for “Removed or Denied” near the bottom.

Keep in mind that it can take a couple of weeks for your information to be added to the registration rolls. If you do not find your name on the rolls after three weeks, or if incorrect information is listed, please contact your County Board of Elections. You can also fill out another form and submit it before the registration deadline; there’s no penalty for registering twice at the same address. For guidance on registering, see 2 Options to Register to Vote at the top of this page.

If you registered to vote but have moved since then, where you vote depends on how long you’ve been at your new address.

If you moved within the same county:

If you moved 30 days or more before Election Day: Complete an in-county change of address form at an Early Voting site or Election Day polling place. You will not need to show proof of residence. If you vote on Election Day, go to the precinct that corresponds to your new address.

If you moved less than 30 days before Election Day: Go to the Election Day polling place in your previous place of residence. Update your registration after Election Day.

The most convenient and reliable way to vote if you have moved within your county but have not updated your registration is to vote at an Early Voting site DURING EARLY VOTING.

If you moved to a different county:

If you moved to your new county 30 or more days before Election Day: you should update your registration and vote in your new county of residence. Your last chance to update this information and vote is on the last day of Early Voting.

If you moved to your new county less than 30 days before Election Day: you can vote in one of the following ways:

• Visit an Early Voting site in your previous county of residence,
• Visit your Election Day polling place in your previous precinct, or
• Request an absentee ballot from your previous county Board of Elections office.

It is important for you to vote in your home polling place on Election Day.

Your polling place depends on what precinct you live in; the polling location is listed on the voter registration card you were mailed after you registered. If you don’t have your card (and you do not need it to vote), you can find your polling place on the Board of Elections “page” with your registration by clicking HERE or at the League of Women Voters site in periods close to an election by clicking HERE.

Some people go to an Early Voting center on Election Day, but that will not work unless it happens to be your own precinct’s polling place.

All polling places are open from 6:30 AM to 7:30 PM on Election Day. If you are in line at 7:30 PM, you will be allowed to vote.

If the election officials cannot find your name on the list of registered voters when you go to vote or if you encounter any other problem, you have the right to receive what is called a “Provisional Ballot.” You will have to fill out a form in addition to your ballot; the form helps the officials research your registration history, and it creates a record that voting-rights groups can review later to make sure you were treated fairly. If elections officials verify your eligibility to vote, your ballot will count like a regular ballot. You will be given a phone number or website to learn if your Provisional Ballot was approved or rejected, and why.

If you had a problem and were not offered a Provisional Ballot or requested one and were denied your right to receive one, please call our Voter Hotline at 1-888-OUR-VOTE or 1-866-OUR-VOTE.

People who have visual, physical, cognitive, or mental disabilities have a right to vote, protected by federal and state law. You have the right to receive assistance when you are voting, but a poll worker is not allowed to offer assistance – you have to ask for it. If you have a disability or difficulty reading (due to language ability, vision, etc.), you can ask for assistance from any person of your choice, except not an agent of your employer or union.

You can also remain in a car and vote from the curbside of the polling place if you would have difficulty going inside, due to your age or a physical disability. A poll worker will bring the ballot to you.

You may want to contact your COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS and ask them about the accessibility of your polling place or an Early Voting location. You have the right to request another permanent polling place in advance of the election if yours is inaccessible.

You can cast a ballot that will be counted (at least in part) at any precinct’s polling place in your county. Your vote will count for all contests on the ballot at your home precinct (e.g., mayor, at-large city council, countywide and statewide contests).  If you try to vote in the wrong precinct’s polling place but in your correct county, you will be sent to the “Help Desk” and shown how to use a provisional ballot. This is called out-of-precinct voting. If you are not offered a provisional ballot in this situation, ask for it.

A Primary election narrows the field of candidates for the General Election. Follow the rules to register to vote to participate in the Primary. You do not have to vote in the Primary to vote in the General Election.

You may not vote in the Primary Runoff (also called the Second Primary) unless you were registered at the time of the original Primary, even if you didn’t vote in the Primary.

If you are registered as an Unaffiliated voter and want to vote in a partisan Primary, you can ask for a Republican, Democratic, Libertarian or Nonpartisan ballot. Your choice does not change your Unaffiliated status or obligate you to vote for a party’s candidates in the General Election. However, if there is a Primary Runoff, you can only participate in the Runoff of the same party that you selected in the original Primary.

Vote With or Without Photo ID

Due to an April 2023 ruling by the NC Supreme Court, you now need to show an NC driver’s license or other “acceptable photo ID” to vote with a regular ballot.

Don’t have an “acceptable ID”? You have other options if you do not have the acceptable forms of photo ID, such as completing an ID Exception Form and submitting it with a provisional ballot during in-person voting or with your absentee ballot if voting by mail (see acceptable ID exceptions here).

Forgot your ID? If you do have an acceptable ID but forget to bring it to the polling place when you vote, you can vote a provisional ballot and then return to your county board of elections with an acceptable ID by the day of county canvass (the Monday after Election Day for municipal elections; the second Thursday after Election Day for all other elections).

Questions about voting? Problems at the polls? Call our toll-free hotline at 888-OUR-VOTE (888-687-8683).

NC election laws are subject to change.

Early Voting lasts 17 days and ends on the Saturday before Election Day.

This is sometimes called “One-Stop Absentee Voting” or “In-Person Absentee Voting” because you are voting early in person, and you will be “absent” on Election Day. (You can also vote early by mail with an absentee ballot.)

Any voter in the county can use any of the Early Voting sites in the county. You do not need an excuse to use Early Voting.

Early Voting sites and times vary by municipality. Many sites are open on evenings and Saturdays, or even Sundays, especially in even-numbered years. The last day of Early Voting is the Saturday before Election Day. 

NOTE: All ballots cast early by eligible voters are counted and help determine the election winner, just like the ballots cast on Election Day. It is a myth that they are not counted the same.

You can find full instructions about early voting here.

You can register to vote *after* the regular deadline, but only during the Early Voting period.

Same-Day Registration is a good option if you missed the 25-day registration deadline, or have recently become eligible to vote. To use Same-Day Registration, you must provide one of the following documents to an election official at an Early Voting location:

• NC driver’s license or identity card from NC DMV
• Utility bill (electric, phone, cable, water, etc.), bank statement, or payroll stub with the voter’s name and current address
• Student photo ID, plus a school document showing the student’s address
• Any document from any government agency with the voter’s name and current address.