At the end of April, the N.C. Supreme Court reinstated Voter ID requirements for all upcoming elections in our state. The N.C. State Board of Elections (NCSBE) must issue guidance, policies, and rules on Voter ID to all voters, potential voters, and county boards of elections (CBOE). They began the process with two communications:
10 Facts About NC’s Photo ID Requirement for Voting
State Board Launches Approval Process for Student and Government Employee IDs for Voting
On June 2, the NCSBE approved an additional step: proposed rules involving in-person voting procedures on election day and during early voting, and rules implementing procedures for absentee-by-mail voting. N.C. has a lengthy process to codify these rules into law, so these proposed rules will be considered temporary for the 2023 elections. The draft rules are similar to those that were approved during earlier versions of Voter ID laws.
There is a shortened period of public comment (until June 23), and a hearing will be held on June 19 at 11 a.m. (You can attend the hearing virtually – info here.) Please review the proposed rules. We urge you to submit comments using the NCSBE portal if there are processes that you find confusing or unreasonable. It is best if you submit your comments by June 18, since the hearing will be held on June 19 – although the portal will remain open until June 23.
If you do submit comments, please use your own words, drawing upon your experiences as a voter, relative of a voter, or election precinct/poll worker. Submissions that reflect personal accounts are most powerful and impactful.
We encourage you to review the comments that the League of Women Voters of North Carolina submitted to the portal.
An excerpt:
The League of Women Voters of North Carolina believes it is essential for clear guidance to be widely disseminated to voters before the absentee ballot voting period begins. Voters must be aware of the new voter ID requirements before they vote by absentee or at in-person polling sites. It is important for voters to understand that Voter ID requirements have never been applied to absentee ballots in NC, but they will be in 2023. Further, training of elections personnel must be clear and comprehensive. … LWVNC is concerned about three areas: the provisional ballot process, the introduction of voter ID requirements for absentee ballots, and the security of voter IDs submitted as a part of the absentee voting process.
