The North Carolina State Board of Elections voted unanimously Tuesday to extend voting at a total of three precincts in three counties until 8:30 p.m. after delays in the opening of polls Tuesday morning.
Voting at the following precincts will be extended until 8:30 p.m.:
County: COLUMBUS
- Precinct/Address: Ransom – Ransom Event Center / 2696 General Howe Highway, Riegelwood, NC 28456
- The polling place was delayed in opening because poll workers were unable to print authorization-to-vote forms (ATVs) due to a problem in the setup of printers and electronic poll books. ATVs are the documents voters sign when they check in to vote.
County: ROBESON
- Precinct/Address: 07 Gaddys – Gaddys Township Volunteer Fire Department / 1022 Gerald Road, Fairmont, NC 28340
- This polling place opened late because staff was locked out and did not have the correct access code for the building.
County: WILSON
- Precinct/Address: Saratoga – Sanoca Volunteer Fire Station / 6903 Church Street, Saratoga, NC 27873
- This polling place was delayed in opening due to a problem printing ATV forms.
With more than 2,650 polling sites statewide, it is commonplace for minor issues to occur at polling sites that result in a brief disruption of voting. The State Board routinely meets to discuss the extension of hours when the need arises on Election Day.
G.S. § 163-166.01 authorizes the State Board to extend voting hours at sites where voting is interrupted for at least 15 minutes, but the Board may extend voting only as long as the disruption and only for the affected sites. All votes cast after 7:30 p.m. in these three precincts will be provisional votes, per state law.
The State Board will not publish unofficial results in Columbus, Robeson, and Wilson counties until all voters have cast their ballots. Results will be reported starting at 7:30 p.m. in any county that did not have hours extended. For unofficial results, go to the Election Results Dashboard.