2024 North Carolina Primary is Tuesday, March 5th
The 2024 primary election, including the presidential preference primary, is Tuesday, March 5, 2024. During this election, voters choose which candidates should be the party nominees to appear on the general election ballot. The 2024 general election is Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024.
Dates and Deadlines
Here are voter dates and deadlines for the 2024 primary election in North Carolina:
• Jan. 19, 2024: County boards of elections begin mailing absentee ballots to eligible voters who submitted an absentee ballot request form.
• Feb. 9, 2024: Voter registration deadline (5 p.m.).*
• Feb. 15, 2024: In-person early voting begins.
• Feb. 27, 2024: Absentee ballot request deadline (5 p.m.).*
• March 2, 2024: In-person early voting ends (3 p.m.).
• March 5, 2024: Primary Election Day.
• March 5, 2024: Absentee ballot return deadline (7:30 p.m.).*
Find important dates for the 2024 general election on our web calendar: Voter Dates & Deadlines.
*Voter registration and absentee voting deadlines are different for military and overseas citizen voters.
Important Tips for Voters
• Need to register or update your registration? See How to Register or Updating Registration.
• Check your registration: Voters can check to make sure their registration information is accurate and up to date using the Voter Search tool. There, you can also find your polling place, absentee ballot information, and more.
• Find your sample ballot: All eligible, registered voters will find their sample ballot(s) in the “Your Sample Ballot” section of their Voter Search profile when they become available. For even-year elections, sample ballots are typically available 50 days before Election Day.
• Don’t forget your photo ID: North Carolina voters will be asked to show photo ID when they check in to vote. Learn more: Voter ID.
• Three ways to vote: Follow the links below to learn about the voting methods available to voters.
1. Vote Early in Person
2. Vote in Person on Election Day
3. Vote By Mail
Source: https://www.ncsbe.gov/voting/upcoming-election
Check out our NASW-NC's Election Page HERE.
Voter ID
Confusion and misinterpretation of North Carolina’s new photo voter ID requirement posed challenges for voters and poll workers during the 2023 municipal elections, according to a report from Democracy NC. The nonprofit voting rights organization found that some voters who did not present an acceptable photo ID did not receive an ID exception form from poll workers, while other voters had their ballots rejected incorrectly by county boards of elections.
The monitoring report, released on Monday, is based on observations of election advocates who attended the pre-canvass and canvass-monitoring process in 35 counties during the 2023 municipal elections in November. Democracy NC produced the report in partnership with other nonprofit, voting rights organizations including the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, Common Cause NC, Forward Justice and others.
Voting rights organizations are concerned about the implementation of the voter ID requirement and the confusion among election administrators and voters leading up to the upcoming 2024 primary and general elections.
Carolina Public Press spoke Monday with the two authors of the report, Carol Moreno, a policy and programs manager and Keith Chapelle, a policy program associate at Democracy NC, both of whom were involved in gathering the findings.
They said they were surprised by how differently the counties interpreted the voter ID exceptions on requirements, because the North Carolina State Board of Elections gave “clear guidance.”
“These changes across Senate Bill 747 and voter ID implementation are a lot for (county boards of elections and election administrators) to keep up with in a presidential election where there’s going to be a much higher turnout and a lot more cynicism among election term voters,” Moreno said during a phone interview with CPP.
The September, October and November 2023 municipal elections “were the first elections under which the new photo ID laws and rules were in effect,” noted an email from Pat Gannon, the spokesperson for the state board. “The State Board of Elections has and will continue to provide guidance to the county boards of elections about the photo ID requirement to ensure uniformity in the application of photo ID laws and rules across the state,” he said.
Voters who lacked an acceptable voter ID were “treated differently in different counties,” according to the findings in the report. Most poll workers told voters who left their IDs at home to complete provisional ballots and return them to the county board of elections with their valid IDs before the day of canvass. A majority of the voters who did not present a valid photo ID at the polls and did not complete an ID exception form, didn’t return to the county board office and their ballot was rejected.
“I didn’t expect the implementation of the photo ID exception form to vary as much as it did,” said Chappelle, one of the authors of the report.
In Mecklenburg County, for example, the county board of elections rejected 30 ballots because the board unanimously determined that the voters “were lacking sufficient reasonable impediment or had incomplete reasonable impediment forms.”
“Insufficient” and “incomplete” did not mean that the forms were missing information, according to the report, instead it meant that board members rejected ballots based on their personal judgment.
Voters who did not have an acceptable photo ID should also have received an ID exception form, but in some cases highlighted by the report, this did not happen. “It’s on the poll worker, whether or not they are sharing the information about the ID exception form as they are supposed to,” Moreno said. “When that information isn’t being shared, they are disenfranchising those voters.”
Source: Carolina Public Press: Read Full Article Here.
Potential Consequences of Not Voting
Lt. Governor Mark Robinson is currently the leading candidate for NC's Governor, to replace Governor Roy Cooper in November after 8 years in office. If elected, Robinson will be able to make appointments to the NC Social Work Licensure Board, as well as appoint cabinet positions like Secretary of the NC Department of Health & Human Services.
“Nearly seven years after North Carolina repealed the “bathroom bill” that led to national headlines and economic boycotts, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson is bringing back the issue of bathroom requirements for transgender people. In campaign speeches in recent weeks, Robinson suggested that people who previously identified as male should be “arrested” if they go in a women’s bathroom. Instead, he suggests they should “find a corner outside somewhere” to relieve themselves.”
You can read more about Robinson's comments here: Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson talks bathrooms, suggests transgender people should go 'outside
2024 NCGA Short Session
The 2024 Short Session begins on April 24, 2024. NASW-NC’s main legislative priority will be to get Senate Bill 718 -Social Work Interstate Licensure Compact passed during the 2024 short session. The Social Work Compact creation was initiated by the Department of Defense to promote licensure portability for military spouses. Many Republican lawmakers, who have the supermajority in both the NC House and Senate, are very of bills that support military populations. The bill’s primary sponsor is Senator Joyce Krawiec, who has announced her plans to retire at the end of the 2024 session. The compact does have bi-partisan support in the NC Senate and was referred to the committee on Rules and Operations on April 10, 2023. It was not subjected to crossover as it was not tied to appropriations. The Social Work Compact will go into effect when at least seven different states pass it. You can see more about the states that have introduced the compact here. NASW-NC has already been speaking with lawmakers about supporting and passing SB 718 when the short session begins. Be sure to watch for updates in upcoming Advocacy Alerts.
Join the NASW-NC Legislative Committee for a virtual Social Work Month Kickoff Event on Wednesday, March 6th from 12:00PM-1:00PM. This presentation will feature members of the NASW-NC Legislative Committee presenting on how social workers can be advocates at the local, state, and federal levels. Advocacy and policy are in our NASW Code of Ethics! The event is free for all to attend! Details and the zoom link will be sent to registrants before the event.
Please join NASW-NC on Wednesday, April 3, 2024 from 12PM-1:30PM for an engaging virtual lunch and learn webinar. Explore the ethical responsibility outlined in the NASW Code of Ethics, emphasizing the importance of practicing within one’s areas of competence and continuously enhancing professional expertise.
This webinar aims to support providers in developing a foundational understanding of Islam and its practices. Gain insights into fostering cultural sensitivity and humility when serving Muslim clients, with a focus on accommodating faith-based needs. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn directly from Muslim Social Workers and enhance your cultural competence in the social work profession.
Zoom link will be emailed out to registrants the day before the meeting.
If you don't think you have received the Zoom link, please check your Spam folder. If not in your Spam, please email Lauren Zingraff at advocacy.naswnc@socialworkers.org for assistance BEFORE the webinar begins.
Ideas presented by speakers are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and policies of NASW-NC.
Thank you to the members of NASW-NC for supporting the advocacy work we do. We would not be able to advocate for the social work profession or social justice issues in North Carolina without a robust and engaged NASW membership. If you are a social worker and not a member, we ask that you join NASW today. Our voice is louder with your membership.
Learn more about NASW-NC membership here.
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