Early in-person voting starts Thursday in North Carolina, giving voters a chance to cast ballots before Election Day with 370 sites opening statewide. The voting window runs from Oct. 15 through Oct. 31, and Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
That is why the search around early voting in North Carolina is heating up now: people want to know where they can go, what they need to bring and whether they can still register. Voters can cast a ballot at any early voting location in the county where they are registered, and they do not have to pick the site closest to home.
Wake County alone will have 18 early voting locations, including sites in Raleigh, Apex and Garner. Abbott's Creek Community Center is listed in north Raleigh, Chavis Community Center is in southeast Raleigh, Apex Community Center is in Apex and Avery Street Recreation Center is in Garner. Polling hours vary by county, so the exact schedule depends on where a voter is registered.
Voters should bring an acceptable photo ID. Accepted IDs include a North Carolina driver's license, a U.S. passport and certain state-issued or approved student IDs, and most IDs must be unexpired or expired for one year or less. Different rules apply to voters 65 and older, military IDs and some other forms of identification.
The other deadline matters just as much. People can still register and vote during early in-person voting if they are eligible and provide proof of their current address, such as a driver's license, utility bill, bank statement or government document. But the deadline for registering by mail or on Election Day itself is already over, and same-day registration will not be available for most voters on Nov. 3.
In past elections, most North Carolinians have voted during early voting rather than on Election Day itself, and this year is no different in the basic setup: a long early window, county-by-county schedules and a final chance to fix registration before the polls close on Nov. 3. Some counties ended Sunday voting this year, while others did not, so voters still need to check the rules where they are registered before they go.
