Elections Board sees 'steady stream' of early voters

Victoria Mcguinn Young, News-Topic, Lenoir, N.C.
·2 min read

Feb. 19—CALDWELL COUNTY — Caldwell County Board of Elections' last tallied a total of 941 ballots during Early Primary Voting so far.

According to Elections Board Director Chad Barnes Monday afternoon, that total includes both the Lenoir and the Granite Falls Early Voting locations.

Barnes said that, in just the three days of Early Voting so far, there has been a pattern of voters showing up at opening in the morning, around early afternoon and then later in the afternoon around the time many voters are off of work.

Despite the pattern, Barnes said voters aren't having to wait in long lines.

There has been a steady stream of voters coming in, but no crowds.

"There is definitely more of a stream of people," Barnes said. "It isn't anything like the 2020 Early Voting. But it's a steady number."

On the first day of Early Voting last Thursday, the Lenoir location had more than 200 ballots by close and Granite Falls counted more than 100.

Barnes said he's glad to see people taking advantage of the Early Voting opportunity.

"I hope we continue on that trend — more and more folks come out for early voting," Barnes said.

Voters are remembering to bring their ID's, Barnes said. A photo ID is required in order to vote. While a North Carolina driver's license is used by most voter's, there is a list of permissible IDs on Caldwell County Board of Elections' website.

Barnes said election officials haven't noticed any confusion about party voting. For primary elections, voters can only vote with a ballot associated with their registered part affiliation, if they are registered with a party. Only unaffiliated voters can choose which ballot to use. The deadline to switch party affiliation status for this election passed Feb. 9.

Voters can cast their ballots at the Caldwell County Resource Center and the Granite Falls Shuford Recreation Center.

Early voting will be held Mondays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. The last day for early voting will be Saturday, March 2, and voting will last from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. that day. March 2 will be the only Saturday of early voting.

The Caldwell County Resource Center is located at 120 Hospital Ave, Lenoir, NC 28645.

The Granite Falls Shuford Recreation Center is located at 56 Pinewood Rd, Granite Falls, NC 28630.