RALEIGH, N.C. — The 2024 election is 36 days away, so the Board of Elections in North Carolina called an emergency meeting on Monday afternoon to figure out how people devastated by Hurricane Helene would be able to vote in their flooded state.
The board devised several measures that would ensure North Carolinians' access to vote would not be hindered.
Information for voters
The first is the creation of NCSBE.gov/Helene, which will be updated "routinely" with information on county board office closures, tips for voters affected by the storm, and basic voting information.
Those without internet or cell service will be provided with printed materials.
Storm victims with questions or concerns can contact their county board of elections, or can contact the State Board of Elections at elections.sboe@ncsbe.gov or by phone at 919-814-0700. They caution that some county board offices in affected counties may be delayed in responding to inquiries until utilities in the region are restored.
The State Board of Elections will also provide information on their social media.
Absentee voting
The U.S. Post Office has said some counties have suspended mail delivery at dozens of post offices in Western North Carolina, not to mention many residential mailboxes have been washed away by floodwaters from Helene.
The Board of Elections offers these guidelines as mail delivery is being monitored:
- A voter who has requested an absentee ballot does not have to vote that ballot. They may simply discard it and vote in-person during the in-person early voting period or on Election Day.
- Voters displaced by the storm who plan to live elsewhere temporarily may request an absentee ballot and have it sent to their temporary address. The easiest way to request an absentee ballot is online through the North Carolina Absentee Ballot Portal. A voter who has already requested a ballot but will not be able to receive it at the address where it was set to be delivered should contact their county board of elections to spoil the original ballot and have a new one sent to their temporary location.
Voter Photo ID
Voters in the affected 25 counties under a disaster declaration may fill out a Photo ID Exception Form to explain why they may not be able to show a photo ID to vote in person or by mail, using the "natural disaster" exception, which is when a natural disaster occurs within 100 days of an election and the President of the United States or North Carolina governor issues a disaster declaration.
State law requires voters to show an acceptable form of photo ID when voting in person and to include a photocopy of their photo ID with their ballot when voting by mail. Most people will show their driver’s license, but many other IDs are acceptable.
County Board Office Closures
The State Board will provide special emergency kits to counties without internet service called "election offices in a box." They will allow county election workers to continue election preparations, including processing absentee ballot requests and registering voters.
Officials have yet to identify or be made aware of any situation where voting equipment or printed ballots were damaged or lost. Details on any changes to early voting sites or Election Day polling places will be released as soon as the information is available.
“Our hearts go out to all North Carolinians affected by Hurricane Helene, including our neighbors, friends and colleagues in Western North Carolina,” said Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the State Board of Elections. “When disasters strike elections, we use this mantra: ‘We do not stop an election; we figure out how to proceed.'"