Media

The State Board issues the following guidance for media representatives who wish to take photographs or record video at a polling place during an election:

• If you are a member of the media and wish to photograph or record video at a polling place, please contact the elections director or media liaison in that county beforehand. They can help arrange a visit or contact the chief judge at a precinct. Find contact information for county boards of elections.
• Precincts designate a “buffer zone” near the entrance of a polling location. No electioneering or loitering is permitted inside the zone.
• Media representatives who wish to enter the voting enclosure must get the approval of the chief judge at the precinct. The chief judge may allow the media to photograph or record video inside the voting enclosure, with consent of the voter(s) being filmed or photographed under Limited access to the voting enclosure (N.C.G.S. § 163-166.3). Such media availabilities are at the discretion of the local election officials, and any visit to a voting location must be brief and non-disruptive to the voting process. The chief judge of the precinct or site coordinator at the early voting site has broad authority under North Carolina law to maintain order in the voting place under Maintenance of order at place of registration and voting (N.C.G.S. § 163-48).
• The media may not interview voters within the voting enclosure.

Reminder: It is a violation of law to photograph or videotape a marked ballot.