Early voting in North Carolina surpassed 1 million ballots cast ahead of the November general election yesterday, reflecting strong participation from the state's voters. Preliminary figures from the State Board of Elections show how engaged the state is in the democratic process, according to the North Carolina State Board of Elections.
According to the data released, a total of 1,008,123 votes have been cast as of 4 p.m. yesterday. The breakdown shows that most voters prefer to engage in person, with 916,433 early in-person votes recorded. Mail-in ballots have been used by many civilians, overseas voters, and military personnel, contributing 77,831, 11,168, and 2,691 ballots, respectively. These figures put voter turnout at approximately 13% of nearly 7.8 million registered voters in the state, as reported by the North Carolina State Board of Elections.
In a statement on the North Carolina State Board of Elections website, executive director Karen Brinson Bell acknowledged the county boards of elections and the many election workers for their efforts. "My sincerest thanks goes out to the county boards of elections and the thousands of election workers around the state who are making this happen," said Bell.
Compared to 2020, early voting numbers show a slight increase. By Saturday, nearly 863,000 voters had cast ballots, marking a 2.4% rise from the 843,000 recorded after three days of in-person voting in the previous presidential election. That year, absentee ballots increased due to the Covid-19 pandemic. North Carolina's early voting period will continue through November 2, with varying schedules and locations by county, though some counties have chosen not to offer Sunday voting. Information about county schedules can be found using the Early Voting Site Search tool on the North Carolina State Board of Elections website
