North Carolina early voters, still recovering from Helene, top turnout in 2020
RALEIGH, N.C. — More North Carolina residents came out to vote on the first day of the election early voting this year than in 2020, even as residents of the mountainous western part of the state continued to recover from the devastating effects of the Hurricane Helene.
The State Board of Elections said Friday that a record 353,166 people cast ballots Thursday at more than 400 early voting locations statewide, up from 348,599 on the first day of October 2020.
While North Carolina’s population and voter registration continue to grow, Thursday’s total as a percentage of the state’s current number of registered voters was slightly lower compared to the percentage of the electorate four years ago, according to administration data. Thursday’s number was 4.54% of the state’s 7.78 million voters, while the first day of 2020 figure at the time was 4.78% of the state’s 7.29 million registrants.
Lines and full parking lots were common Thursday at voting locations in Piedmont’s densely populated provinces and in the mountainous region where historic floods three weeks ago destroyed homes, roads and bridges and knocked out electricity and water systems. The board said Friday that it had received no reports of major issues or voting issues.
Thursday’s turnout “is a clear sign that voters are energized about this election, that they have confidence in the electoral process, and that a hurricane will not stop North Carolina residents from exercising their right to vote,” said Karen Brinson Bell , executive director of the state administration. edition. Election officials said clear, sunny weather likely contributed to turnout on Thursday.
Helene was the deadliest hurricane to hit the US mainland since Katrina in 2005. decimating remote towns in Appalachia and killing at least 246 people, with just over half of North Carolina’s storm-related deaths.
Although electricity has been almost fully restored in western North Carolina, tens of thousands do not have access to clean running water. Still, all but four of the 80 voting locations initially planned for the 25 western counties hardest hit by the storm were open Thursday.
“Obviously any time you have something catastrophic like this, it’s going to disrupt people’s lives,” Bill Whalen, 75, of Asheville, said Thursday, but “at least in my neighborhood there’s a widespread understanding of the importance of this election . and how important it is to vote.”
The early voting period, which lasts through November 2 in all 100 counties, is extremely popular in North Carolina. More than 3.6 million ballots – 65% of all ballots – were cast during early voting in the 2020 general election.
Traditional absentee voting began just days before Helene reached the state. Through Thursday, more than 75,000 ballots have been received from voters in the state, the military and abroad, the board said.
In addition to president, the North Carolina ballot also includes races for governor, attorney general and several other statewide positions. All seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and the General Assembly are also up for re-election.
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Associated Press video journalist Erik Verduzco in Asheville, North Carolina, contributed to this report.