Election Day is Tuesday; here's what you need to know about voting

May 13—Tuesday is D-Day for the Democratic and Republican candidates vying for their party's nomination at the Primary Election.

Early voting wrapped up at 3 p.m. Saturday at the three polling locations in Waynesville, Canton and Clyde. On Tuesday, voters must vote at their home precinct. (See document attached to this story onlline.) Those who are uncertain where they vote can use the precinct lookup tool on the Haywood County website.

Polls open at 6:30 a.m. in 29 precincts in Haywood. Those accustomed to voting at the Canton armory will vote across the street in the Canton Middle School gymnasium since the flooded armory has not yet reopened. Polls remain open until 7:30 p.m.

The only contested races locally are the sheriff's race, where three Republicans are vying for the GOP nomination and two Democrats are competing for the Democratic nomination.

There is a five-way contest in the Republican commissioner race where the Tuesday vote will narrow the slate to three.

The 11th Congressional District has a heated race on both the Republican and Democratic tickets as many vie to unseat incumbent U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn.

Election process

Robert Inman, Haywood County elections director, has a notebook where he tracks voter turnout in each election. The record shows the early voting turnout has been robust so far in the 2022 races.

In the 2018 mid-term election, the total number of votes cast during the early voting period was 1,910. As of Friday morning, more than 2,700 ballots had been cast in Haywood.

Inman said the election process is running smoothly and that the public seems to be well-satisfied with the process.

That includes the observers who were appointed by the political party chairwomen in Haywood. Observers are allowed to remain inside the voting area and watch how the voting process is being conducted.

The number of observers in this year's election is a marked departure from years past, Inman said. In the past decade, there have just been a couple of observers, he said, but this election, there has been an almost constant presence, primarily from Republican observers.

"All three sites have been involved and the senior resource center has had an observer for most of the day since voting started," Inman said. "I have no doubt they should glean a lot of information from the process after witnessing it so closely and for that extended amount of time."

Myrna Campbell, the Haywood County Democratic Party chairwoman, said one individual saw a state email and volunteered to serve. She appointed her as an observer.

"I did not see the need to appoint more people to have a constant presence at the polls," Campbell said. "Election workers consider this their civic duty and are very proud of the service they provide. It sends the wrong message to have people there continually watching."

Kay Miller, the Haywood Republican Party chairwoman, said appointing poll observers is a party priority across the state — and nation — after what some believe was election fraud in 2020.

She said so far, the observers have found nothing of note in Haywood but suspects that isn't the case in other parts of the state.

"Folks here are well trained," Miller said. "We have not found anything that is a big deal, but we're going to be there because we can. We want to be involved, and want to know what's going on. It is part of our duty. Voting is a privilege."

What's driving turnout?

Miller credits the robust voter turnout during this off-presidential year election with public displeasure about high gas prices, inflation and the previous election results.

"People are still really ticked off with the fraud in the 2020 election," she said. "There is always more apathy in the primaries, and it's a challenge to educate people about their importance. Maybe we need to bring back a bit more civics in school."

While local statistics about which political party had more voters to date weren't available, statewide numbers indicate there are far more Republican voters participating in the election, and far more unaffiliated voters selecting a Republican as opposed to a Democratic ballot.

Campbell said she believes part of the reason many unaffiliated voters are selecting a Republican ballot is to vote against Cawthorn.

The freshman congressman has repeatedly made headlines for missing votes, attempting to take weapons onto an airplane (twice), speeding, being shown in compromising social situations on social media and his role in the events unfolding on Jan.6, to name a few.

While the unaffiliated voters aligning with Republicans is high in the May election, Campbell is hoping more will end up voting Democratic in the General Election.