MORRISVILLE, N.C. (August 21, 2016) — The North Carolina State Board of Elections has now ruled on all 20 non-unanimous early voting plans for the November midterms, after a marathon day in which State Board members, County Boards of Elections officials from across the state, and voting rights advocates gathered to debate, deliberate, and document expansive conversation over early voting sites and hours.
In a day of compromises, wins, and losses, one of the biggest shifts was county boards voting along party lines to cut Sunday voting hours in the majority of counties where their local boards could not agree on weekend schedules, including Anson, Chatham, Columbus, Craven, Greene, Harnett, Nash, Pasquotank, Pitt, Rockingham, Scotland, Union, and Wayne Counties.
In Rowan and Lee Counties, the State Board adopted the majority plan but added back Sunday hours. Meanwhile, in counties such as Columbus, Granville, Jackson, and Pitt, key early voting sites were added back to the list of available sites after having been cut during initial plans. Notably, in Jackson County, in a compromise vote, the Western Carolina University early voting site will remain open, with the Cullowhee Recreation Center added as well. After Guilford County crucially lost voting sites at North Carolina A&T and University of North Carolina-Greensboro earlier this year, members voted to add Stokesdale and Union Square sites, but voted against restoring the college campus locations.
Early voting is the most popular method of voting in North Carolina across party lines and allows election officials to meet the needs of their communities. Public comments on early voting plans from thousands of voters across the state, as well as testimonies from county officials, made it clear that voters support expanding options, not limiting them.
“The cuts to Sunday voting in many counties will have a chilling effect on voters, full stop,” said Brian Kennedy, Policy Director at Democracy North Carolina. “Sunday hours have been available in many of these counties for multiple election cycles. Minority members of county boards as well as voters who work and travel Monday through Saturday made explicit requests to continue early voting plans that have been in place for years and allow for flexibility and access to the ballot box. Cutting Sunday hours and sites not only has a huge impact on working families, it also creates confusion in communities who have grown accustomed to certain hours and locations being available to them during elections.”
“We should be adopting early voting plans – with expanded hours and location options – that increase voter turnout and participation. It is disconcerting and disheartening to witness officials that appear to be actively working against this shared, nonpartisan goal, and even in some cases engaging with fellow officials to sabotage our elections and voter access. But we also witnessed incredible state and county election board members and advocates that endured hours of debate yesterday and recognize and honor this goal. Our work to support and expand early voting access will continue throughout this midterm election season.”