Become an Observer of County Boards of Election Meetings in North Carolina

Democracy is fragile – it is certainly not something to be taken for granted. And while we tend to focus on the highest offices in the land – such as the President and the lawmakers in the U.S. Congress – it’s often what happens in our backyards that impacts our lives most. Many people are looking for a way to get involved in protecting our right to vote and supporting the basic infrastructure of our elections.

One essential way is to observe County Board of Elections meetings near you. The people serving on these boards need oversight. We will help you overcome the learning curve and provide all the tools you need.

REPORTING FORM

Here are the steps.

1. Find a County Board of Elections meeting near you to attend as an observer. Remember, it’s often the smaller counties neighboring yours that are most in need of your time.

View the County Board of Election sites using a map from NCSBE.

View our list of 2023 meeting schedules for the boards of elections in NC’s 100 counties, in alphabetical order by county.

2. Get ready for the meeting. Be sure to check out the tools listed under “Resources” below. We encourage you to take the reporting form with you. If you know what you're looking for while you're observing the meeting, it will make it easier to submit your report. Questions? Please reach out to us at communications [at] lwvnc.org.

3. After the meeting, submit your report using this easy-to-use form. Here are a few examples of reports we received following the May 2022 statewide primary. We would love as much detail as possible.

4. Make plans to attend your next meeting! Return to step 1 and repeat all the steps! Recruit friends to do this work by sharing this page and the various resources on it.

"24 absentee ballots were returned due to incomplete witness information. The Board of Elections will send replacement ballots for those." – excerpt from a report we received from an observer in the fall of 2022