Author: Gary O. Bartlett, Executive Director
G.S. § 163‐165.6 requires the State Board to adopt a process for random selection of placing names on primary ballots. The relevant portion of that law is set out below.
- Order of Candidates on Primary Official Ballots. ‐ The order in which candidates shall appear on a county's official ballots in any primary ballot item shall be determined by the county board of elections using a process designed by the State Board of Elections for random selection.
Since March 4, 2002, the State Board of Elections’ procedure for random selection in regards to the order of candidate names in primaries listed candidates in reverse alphabetical order starting with the last letter of the alphabet. The order lasted for a two‐year period. The next year the order reverted to regular alphabetical order but started with the second letter of the alphabet and ended with the letter preceding the letter that started the order. Then the plan alternates every two years between reverse and regular alphabetical order. For the primaries being conducted in 2012 and 2013 the ballot order will be: DEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZABC.
The above arrangement only applies to primaries. Candidates in Board of Education and other nonpartisan election contests will appear in strict alphabetical order. In partisan contests on general election ballots, candidate names shall be grouped by party, with parties ordered as specified in G.S. § 163‐165.6; in multi‐seat partisan contests, candidates of the same party shall be listed alphabetically.
For informational purposes the constitutional amendment question for the May 8, 2012, primary is included below as it shall appear on optical scan ballots:
[Download the numbered memo PDF below to view image.]
↓ Candidate Order and Statewide Referendum for 2012 Primary Elections: Numbered Memo 2012-02 (PDF)