Style Guide: II. Content

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Addresses and Locations
• Capitalization Rules, Formatting, and Punctuation
• Dates and Holidays, Numbers and Times

Return to the North Carolina State Board of Elections style guide overview

Overview

The objective of our communications, as a public agency, is to distribute credible and informative election content that benefits the widest possible audience. This page is intended to ensure our communication is consistent, clear, and concise. Below you’ll find guidance for voice and tone, writing style, and vocabulary.

Voice and Tone

Our voice is plain-spoken, honest, and genuine with a straightforward and clear tone. We use plain language in our writing and strive to put in the work to understand our subject matter and be concise for our audience. We write for everyone and aim to make our content as simple as possible to connect with as many readers as possible.

Conscious Inclusivity

When appropriate, use phrases or words such as the public, users, people, or voters. Additionally, where possible:

• Avoid using gendered pronouns; instead, use they or their.
• Avoid age-related descriptions of people unless necessary for the content; in those cases, try using older people or older person — instead of elderly or senior.

Writing Style and Vocabulary

In general, we abide by the AP Stylebook guidelines with noted exceptions.

Addresses and Locations

Here are the most common types of addresses and locations for us, and advice regarding format and use:

Email and Website

 Email and web addresses (URLs):

• Do lowercase email and web addresses, even when they appear at the start of a sentence.
• Do end with a full stop (period) if an email or web address appears at the end of a sentence.
  • Example: elections.sboe@ncsbe.gov.
• Do not include the prefix in web addresses: http:// or http s:// and www.
  • Example: ncsbe.gov, not http s://www. ncsbe.gov/
• Exceptions: This guidance does not apply to places where hyperlinks are not embeddable (e.g. most social media posts).

Note: On primarily digitally accessed material, avoid web addresses that direct to a page lower in the hierarchy than a homepage. Instead, opt for embedded hyperlinks with meaningful text for optimized accessibility.

Mailing (Postal)

When a ZIP code is included in an address, follow U.S. Postal Service (USPS) style:

• Do not include punctuation.
  • Example: PO Box 27255 Raleigh NC 27611-7255
• Do include the last four digits of the ZIP code when it is known.

Note: The USPS ZIP Code Lookup Tool helps find the last four digits of a ZIP code when the street address is known. 

Non-Specific

• Do include punctuation for broad locations.
  • Example: Raleigh, N.C.

North Carolina, N.C., or NC?

• Do spell out North Carolina in headers and body text when not used as an adjective.
  • Example: This was a record for North Carolina.
• Do use N.C. (the abbreviated form) as an adjective in body text or where space is very limited (alerts, article cards, and tables, etc.).
  • Example: This was a record for N.C. voters.
• Do not use N.C. (the abbreviated form) in a header.
• Only use NC (the postal abbreviated form) in branded material (e.g. NC State Board of Elections, NCSBE), lengthy headers, and mailing addresses.

Capitalization, Formatting, and Punctuation

Capitalize proper nouns for people, places, and agency names. See below for additional guidance.

Absentee By Mail, Absentee-By-Mail

• Do capitalize By in Absentee By Mail in headers.
• Do not hyphenate absentee by mail when it is used as a verb.
  • Example: They decided to vote absentee by mail.
• Do hyphenate absentee-by-mail when used as an adjective.
  • Example: Absentee-by-mail ballots accounted for a large percentage of the vote.
• See also, Vote By Mail below.

Ampersands (AKA &s)

• Do use an ampersand when it is part of a company’s name or in a composition title.
• Do use an ampersand for a few accepted abbreviations.
  • Examples: Q&A, B&B, R&B.
• Do not use an ampersand in place of and.

Note: Ampersands, where space is very limited, are sometimes acceptable.

Ballot Tracking

• Do not hyphenate ballot tracking.

Court Cases

• Do italicize court cases.
• Do not use vs.; do use v.
  • Example: Marbury v. Madison.

Commas

• Do use a comma before the last item in a series within a sentence, regardless of complexity, for maximum clarity.
  • Example (simple series): The flag is red, white, and blue. 
  • Example (complex series): Determine whether you are eligible to vote, whether you are already registered, and how to register.

Note: This guidance differs from the AP Style guidelines.

COVID-19

• Do capitalize and hyphenate COVID-19 in headers and body text.

Curly Quotes (AKA Smart Quotes)

• Do use curly quotes and apostrophes to convey formality and attention to detail.
• Do not use straight quotes as they are less legible and don’t match the characters.

Note: For additional detail about smart quotes and keyboard shortcuts, see Straight and Curly Quotes | Practical Typography.

Democrat or Democratic

• Do use Democrat as a noun and capitalize when describing political affiliation.
  • Example: The nominee is a Democrat. 
• Do use Democratic as an adjective and capitalize the party name.
  • Example: The Democratic Party is one of the two major political parties.

Election Day

• Do capitalize Election Day in headers and body text.

Election Night

• Do not capitalize election night unless it is part of a header.

E-Newsletter

• Do hyphenate e-newsletter.
• Do not capitalize e-newsletter unless it is part of a header. 

Em Dashes

• Do use em dashes as an alternative to a comma, parentheses, or colon.
• Do add spaces on both sides.

Note: You can create an em dash on a Windows keyboard by holding down the Alt key and typing 0151 with Number Lock turned on.

Email

• Do not hyphenate email as it is more translateable and globally recognized without punctuation.
• Do not capitalize email unless it is part of a header.

Emboldening

• Do embolden text to create strong emphasis.
• Do not combine bold and italics. Start with italics and move to bold if the emphasis is not strong enough.

Emphasis

• Do not use quotation marks for emphasis. 
• Do use bold or italics.
• Do not underline for emphasis as underlining is reserved for use with hyperlinks.
• See Emboldening or Italicizing entries for more guidance.

En Dashes

• Do use en dashes to show a range of numbers.
  • Example: 500–1,000 signatures required.
• Do use an en dash to indicate votes.
  • Example: The board approved the project with a 5–2 vote.
• Do not add a space on either side.

Note: You can create an en dash on a Windows keyboard by holding down the Alt key and typing 0150 with Number Lock turned on.

Events

• See Events under Dates and Holidays, Numbers and Times for guidance.

FAQ 

• FAQ is acceptable in all uses for the phrase frequently asked questions.
• Do not use an apostrophe to pluralize FAQs.
• Only pluralize FAQ when referencing multiple series.

Frontrunner

• Frontrunner is one word.
• Do not hyphenate or add spaces to frontrunner.

Headers (AKA Headlines)

Headers are used on the title portion, or above sections of the body text on a page to help viewers scan for relevant content.

• Do use title case, capitalizing words with four or more letters, and proper nouns with fewer than four letters.
• Do not use end punctuation in headers, unless they pose a question.
  • Example: What Did We Learn?
• Do lowercase minor words in a header.
  • Example: Where to Register

Note: You may capitalize any word in a header, regardless of length, if it is important to the title. If you are unsure of what to capitalize in a header, there are many free, web-based title case tools to generate AP-style headlines, such as titlecase.com and capitalizemytitle.com.

Lowercased in Headers

Examples of words not usually capitalized in a header:

• a
• an
• and
• at
• but
• by (Exceptions: See Absentee By Mail and Vote By Mail entries.)
• for
• in
• nor
• of
• on
• or
• so
• the
• to
• up
• yet

Hyphens (AKA Dashes)

Hyphens are joiners.

• Do use hyphens to avoid ambiguity, or to form an idea from two or more words.
• Do refer to some of the common election terms on this page for more guidance.

Note: Hyphen use is far from standardized. Do use them when they add clarity. Do not use them if they add clutter or distraction to your sentence.

ID

• Do uppercase ID and use it as the short form of identification.

In-Person Voting, Voting in Person

• Do hyphenate in-person in the term in-person voting.
• Do not hyphenate in person in the term voting in person.

Internet

• Do not capitalize internet unless it is part of a header.

Italicizing

• Do italicize text for subtle emphasis.
• Do not combine bold and italics. Start with italics and move to bold if the emphasis is not strong enough.

Job and Personal Titles

• Do not capitalize personal titles when they are used generically.
  • Example: The director got approval.
• Do capitalize titles when they precede a name.
  • Example: Director Lopez got approval.

Note: Whenever possible, keep titles gender-neutral. For example, chair or chairperson instead of chairman or chairwoman.

Lists (Bulleted, Numbered)

• Do introduce the list with a short phrase or sentence.
• Do capitalize the first word following the bullet.
• Do use periods; do not use semicolons at the end of each section, whether it is a full sentence or a phrase.
• Do use parallel construction for each item in a list (same voice, verb tense, etc.) 

Nonpartisan

• Do not hyphenate or add spaces to nonpartisan.

Preregister, Preregistering

• Do not hyphenate or add spaces to preregister or preregistering.

Reelect, Reelecting

• Do not hyphenate or add any spaces to reelect or reelecting.

Republican

• Do capitalize Republican when describing political affiliation.

Same-Day Register, Same-Day Registration

Do hyphenate same-day in same-day register and same-day registration.

Seasons

• Do lowercase the names of seasons.
  • Examples: (e.g. summer, autumn or fall, winter, and spring.)
• Only capitalize seasons when they are part of a header or a proper name.
  • Example: The Summer Olympics.

Spaces

• Do always use single spaces between words and after any punctuation.
• Do not use double spaces between sentences.

Statutes

• Do start with N.C.G.S. § and follow with the appropriate chapter/subchapter numbers and/or letters when referring to North Carolina statutes in text.
  • Example: Most of the North Carolina election laws are found within N.C.G.S. § 163.
• Do link to the HTML-formatted version of the statute on the North Carolina Legislative website for greater accessibility.
  • Example: See N.C.G.S. § 163.3 for information about special elections.

Underlining

• Do not use underlining for emphasis. See the Emphasis entry above for alternative options.
• Do use underlining for hyperlinks.
• Do reserve underlining for email and website hyperlinks only.

Note: In print materials, do underline the link, but do not underline the period.

Vote By Mail, Vote-By-Mail

• Do capitalize By in Vote By Mail in headers.
• Do not hyphenate vote by mail when it is used as a verb.
  • Example: They decided to vote by mail.
• Do hyphenate vote-by-mail when used as an adjective.
  • Example: Vote-by-mail ballots accounted for a large percentage of the vote.
• See also, Absentee By Mail above.

Webcast, Webpage, Website

• Webcast, webpage, and website are one word each and lowercase unless part of a header or at the beginning of a sentence.
• Do not hyphenate or add spaces.

With

• We do not capitalize with in a header usually. See the Headers entry above for more guidance.

ZIP Code

• Do capitalize ZIP in ZIP code.

Dates and Holidays, Numbers and Times

Find the best practices to format dates, events, numbers, times, and more.

Dates

Find the details on each component of dates below.

• Do not use st, nd, rd, or th with dates.

Days of the Week

• Do spell days of the week out in full, unless space is limited (on data tables, alerts, articles cards, etc.):
  • Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday.
• Do shorten the days of the week and add a full-stop when there is limited space:
  • Mon., Tue., Wed., Thu., Fri., Sat., Sun.

Note: On data tables, using three-letter forms without a period is acceptable.

Months

Refer to the AP Style Months chart below to advise on how to abbreviate certain months when you communicate a specific date.

• Do spell out a month without a specific date, and do not use a comma when you include the year.
  • Example: November 2020.
• Do abbreviate a month if applicable (see chart) with a specific date, and do use a comma after the date to set off the year.
  • Example: Nov. 3, 2020.
• Do add a comma after the day of the week, if included.
  • Example: Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020.

On tables, three-letter forms without a period are acceptable:

• Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec.

Note: You may completely spell out months on more formal materials such as press releases or landing pages.

Refer to the table below when you communicate a specific date, e.g. Nov. 3.

• When a month is used with a specific date, abbreviate only:
  • Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., and Dec.
• All the other months should be completely spelled out:
  • March, April, May, June, July

Years

• Do use the letter s but do not use an apostrophe after the figures when expressing decades or centuries.
  • Example: The 2020s.
• Do use an apostrophe before figures expressing a decade if numerals are left out.
  • Example: The ’20s.

Events

• Do lead with the entity hosting the event.
• Do format the time before the day of the week.
• Do place the day of the week before the month, day, and year.
• Do disclose the location last.
  • Example: The State Board will host a meeting at 11 a.m. Thursday, April 23, 2021, at the Dobbs Building.

Holidays

See the table of popular holidays in the United States, sorted alphabetically below, for guidance on names, dates, and spelling. Identify which holidays are observed by our state and/or partnered federal agencies with the key below. Many federal holidays will also impact USPS mail delivery to our agency. See the note below the table regarding holiday leave dates.

(*) Indicates observance by our state’s agencies only (through 2023).
(**) Indicates observance by federal and our state’s agencies (through 2023).
(***) Indicates observance by federal agencies only (USPS may differ).

Regarding Holiday Leave Dates

• Refer to Holiday Calendar | North Carolina Office of State Human Resources (NCOSHR) for which holiday dates our state agency will be closed.
• Refer to Pay and Leave Calendar | Office of Personnel Management (OPM) for which holiday dates certain federal agencies will be closed.
• Refer to Holiday and Events | USPS for dates the mail will not be delivered.

Numbers

Use accurate, vetted numbers in your content often, for specificity, and to engage our audience. See additional guidance below.

Commas

• Do use commas in numerals 1,000 and more in public-facing communications.

Fewer Than, More Than

• Do use fewer than or more than when referencing numbers.
  • Example: The winner received more than 500 votes. The runner-up had fewer than 500 votes.
• Do not use under or over.

Percentages

• It is not necessary to spell out percent when used with a number.
• Do use the percent sign when paired with a numeral.
  • Example: 23%, not 23 percent.

Words or Numerals?

• Do use numerals for numbers in a header.
  • Example: 5 Ways to Combat Misinformation
• Do use numerals for times, ages, temperatures, speeds, percentages, dates, and money.
• Do use numerals in tables and charts.
• Do not use numerals for numbers under 10 in the body text; do use words.
  • Example: Four more days until the election.

Times

• Do express time as a figure followed by a.m. or p.m., not am or pm.
  • Example: 9:15 a.m., not 9:15 am.
• Do not use 12 p.m. or 12 a.m.; do use noon or midnight.
• Do not use 00 if a fraction of an hour does not apply.
  • Example: 5 p.m., not 5:00 p.m.