CHARLOTTE, N.C. — In-person early voting for the Nov. 3 general election begins Thursday, giving Charlotte and Mecklenburg County voters more than two weeks to cast a ballot before Election Day.
Across North Carolina, 370 early sites are opening. Voters may use any early location inside the county where they are registered, and the State Board of Elections offers an online search tool to find one. The early period ends at 3 p.m. on Oct. 31.
A photo ID is required at check-in. A driver’s license is the most common choice, though most other government-issued IDs also work. People who missed the Oct. 9 registration cutoff are not shut out: they can sign up and vote in a single trip during the early period if they bring proof of where they live. Registered voters can also fix a name or an in-county address change at the check-in table.
Early ballots have become the norm in the state. Roughly three of every four North Carolina voters, 74%, voted early in the 2024 general election.
The Mecklenburg County Board of Elections has posted the local list of early sites and hours on its website and is pushing back on a rumor that keeps resurfacing. Posts claim a ballot is spoiled if a poll worker writes on it. That is false in North Carolina, the board says, because workers often must mark ballots under state law.
Voters with questions can reach the county elections office at 704-336-2133 or visit it at 741 Kenilworth Ave., Suite 202. Anyone who skips the early window will vote on Tuesday, Nov. 3, at their assigned precinct polling place.
