It’s Election Day in North Carolina: Full coverage from around the Triangle
It’s Election Day in North Carolina, and voters around the state will head to their polling places today to cast their ballots.
More than 577,000 voters have already done so for this election, casting their ballots in person during the early voting period or by mail, according to the state Board of Elections. That’s a significant increase from four years ago, when about 295,000 voters voted early using the same methods, the board said Monday.
Local, state and national offices are on the ballot in today’s primary election, and both Democrats and Republicans have several high-profile, competitive races. The winners of each party’s primaries will move on to the general election in November.
The News & Observer will provide live updates on the elections throughout the day. Check back here for information and results from key races, plus Election Day scenes from Triangle polling places.
Voters in Cary talk about education
Updated 1:50 p.m.: Elections have always been important to Gracie Whalen and Yen Tran, a married couple who moved from Chicago to Cary in May 2020. But since welcoming their first child, they feel even more is at stake.
”We’re especially interested in education and what’s being taught,” Whalen said. “We moved from a very liberal area to an area that’s becoming more liberal, and we know we need a say in what’s being taught in our public schools. Our daughter needs to know about American history as it happened.”
Their 15-month-old won’t be in school for a while, but they’re worried about how her future might look. Education is only one of the issues they feel strongly about.
”Our daughter was a (newborn intensive care unit) baby, so now we’re even more focused on healthcare issues, which we didn’t really think about before,” Tran said.
Researching candidates took more time than they anticipated this year, Whalen said, as it felt easier in Chicago to choose who would get their votes.
”I’m not neutral on anything,” Whalen said. “And we had to dig so much to feel educated for something so important.”
Tran and Whalen cast their ballots at Fellowship Church of Christ in Cary around 12:45 p.m.
Cary polling place volunteers talk about the election’s importance
Updated 12:05 p.m.: Cary has two elections taking place Tuesday: the primary election (which is statewide and partisan) and the town’s municipal election (which is non-partisan and not a primary).
The N&O went to a handful of Cary polling sites to hear from voters and learn why this election is important to them.
Dixie Lee Newsome takes her civic duty seriously. She’s voting today — and volunteering at her polling place for the ninth year in a row — in support of educators.
Newsome, who is Black, went through the Wake County Public School System as a child when schools were still segregated. Before retiring in 2013, she worked as a supervisor for the school district after years of teaching at the middle and high school levels.
“Teachers should be some of the highest-paid in the nation,“ Newsome said. “It’s difficult to see the elected people take out their personal opinions on those educating our children.“
Newsome sat in the shade outside Sha’arei Shalom Congregation in Cary as she passed out flyers for Carissa Johnson, a candidate for Cary Town Council at-large.
By 10:30 a.m., the 100th voter at the Cary location exited the building. Underneath the morning sun, voters slowly trickled in and out. They largely passed by Newsome, representing the Democratic Party, and by volunteer Jolie Mayes, representing the Republican Party, without stopping for more information. The two sat on opposite sides of the street, frequently meeting under a tree to chat in the shade.
“It’s always slow like this in the morning, and usually older people come early to avoid traffic,” Newsome said. “We’ll get a larger turnout when the workday finishes.”
Voters entered by motorcycle, bicycle, car and a GoCary Door to Door paratransit bus. Some voters brought their young kids.
Mayes said she will be voting today at her precinct across town, she said, on behalf of small businesses, such as the one owned by her father-in-law.
“They’re talking about raising the minimum wage, but people don’t get the economics of that. It sounds so good in theory, but it’s counterproductive,” Mayes said. “People have worked at my father-in-law’s company for years and earned their wages, so if they raise the wages, it’ll just deflate the person who’s worked so hard.”
Mayes, a lifelong North Carolinian, is volunteering at the polls for the first time, she said.
NC election officials provide Election Day updates
Updated 11:28 a.m.: N.C. State Board of Elections officials provided updates on today’s primary election in a press conference, focusing largely on election security and encouraging registered voters to get out and vote before the polls close this evening.
Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the board, cited several safeguards the board uses to ensure elections are secure and accurate, such as post-election audits, which will take place beginning Wednesday and are performed by bipartisan teams, and using certified and tested machines to count ballots.
With all of those safeguards in place, Brinson Bell said, voters should be confident that their vote will be counted and the results of the election will be accurate.
“We do this work every day of the year and we take it extremely seriously,“ Brinson Bell said. “There is so much false and misleading information about elections out there, and we urge you to reach out to election officials at the state board or your county board of elections if you have any questions about the election process.”
Brinson Bell also discussed possible extensions to voting hours at some polling places, saying the elections board is working with three counties — Gates, Warren and Wilson — to determine if there were delays in opening some polling places this morning that would have impacted anyone’s ability to vote.
State law allows the board to extend voting at certain polling places when voting is interrupted for at least 15 minutes. At this time, Brinson Bell said, the board has not determined that there is a reason to extend voting in those locations.
Tell us who you think will win key races
Updated 10:05 a.m.: We won’t start getting election results until later tonight, but in the meantime, we want to know your predictions on who will win key primary races around the state.
Make your selections below, based on who you think will win — not just who you want to win.
Runoff primaries are possible
Updated 9:30 a.m.: With several races in today’s primary having crowded fields of candidates, there’s a chance we could see another primary in North Carolina this election cycle.
That’s because it’s not enough just to win the most votes in the primary. Candidates must reach a threshold of more than 30% of the votes in their race to advance to the general election, which will be held in November.
If no candidate receives more than 30% of the vote in their primary race today, the second-place candidate in that race may request a second primary. The second primary, featuring the two top vote-getters, would be held on July 26.
Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan reported for The N&O that there are three prominent races to watch today for the possibility of a second primary:
▪ North Carolina’s 4th Congressional District, where there’s a crowded field of eight Democrats vying for their party’s nomination to the seat currently held by retiring Rep. David Price.
▪ The 13th Congressional District, where eight candidates are vying for the Republican nomination.
▪ The 11th Congressional District, which also features eight Republican candidates, including first-term Rep. Madison Cawthorn.
Requests from candidates for a second primary must be made to the state Board of Elections by May 26.
Polling place hours, locations for primary election
Updated 7:30 a.m.: To kick things off, let’s get cover some key information you should know before you head to the polls.
▪ Polls across the state are open today from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. If you’re in line to vote when the polls close at 7:30, you are still able to vote. Stay in line.
▪ You cannot register to vote on Election Day. The deadline to register to vote in North Carolina is 25 days before the election. If you did not register prior to the deadline, or did not register and vote during the early voting period, you cannot vote today. Not sure if you’re registered? You can find out if you are registered to vote by entering your information into the state Board of Elections’ Voter Search at vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup.
▪ You must vote at your assigned polling place on Election Day. Unlike during the early voting period, when voters can vote at a handful of one-stop locations in their county, voters voting on Election Day must vote only at their assigned polling place. You can find your Election Day polling place by entering your information into the state Board of Elections’ Voter Search at vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup or by searching your address in the Election Day Polling Place Search at vt.ncsbe.gov/PPLkup.
▪ Curbside voting is available for eligible individuals. Every voting site in North Carolina offers curbside voting for voters who are unable to enter their polling place without physical assistance, due to age or disability. For more information on curbside voting, visit ncsbe.gov/voting/help-voters-disabilities/accessible-voting-sites/curbside-voting.
▪ You do not need to show a photo ID to vote. More information is available at ncsbe.gov/voting/voter-id.
▪ No voter should be turned away from voting. If a question arises about your eligibility to vote when you arrive to the polling place, you may vote using a provisional ballot. More information about provisional ballots is available at ncsbe.gov/voting/provisional-voting.
More information about voting on Election Day is available from the state Board of Elections at ncsbe.gov/voting/vote-person-election-day.
Use N&O and Herald-Sun Voter Guides to research candidates
Updated 7:30 a.m.: Still undecided about certain races, or just want to do some more research before you cast your ballot?
We’ve compiled this round-up of The N&O and Herald-Sun’s comprehensive Voter Guides with information on races in Wake, Durham, Orange, Johnston and Chatham counties. We asked candidates questions about inflation, climate change, abortion and more.
Click on the link below for your county to find our candidate questionnaires for races in that county, including local, state and national offices.
Additional Voter Guide information is available at newsobserver.com/voter-guide.
