Early voting begins Feb. 12
Early voting for the primary election begins Thursday, Feb. 12 — just a week from tomorrow.
The official primary election day is March 3, and on that day, the polls will open at 6:30 a.m. and close at 7:30 p.m.
Mail-in absentee ballots for those who qualify will need to be received by the Mitchell County Board of Elections by March 3 at 7:30 p.m. The last day to request an absentee ballot is Feb. 17.
If you are a registered voter now, Friday is the last day to change your registration.
“People (who are not currently registered) can register to vote at early voting,” said Lori Huskins, deputy director for the Mitchell County Board of Elections. “But you can’t just come in and say ‘I want to change my registration’ that day.”
More information on who is qualified for this same-day registration can be found at the North Carolina State Board of Elections website, here: https://www.ncsbe.gov/registering/how-register/register-person-during-early-voting
This year, Mitchell County has two primary elections, choosing nominees to represent the Republican and Democratic parties in the fall. No other parties have primary elections in Mitchell County, but that doesn’t mean that there won’t be additional options available to voters on the day of the general election in November.
Unaffiliated voters — voters who registered to vote but did not choose a party affiliation at that time — are allowed to vote in either the Democratic or Republican primaries.
“They will choose between these two ballots,” Huskins said. “If you’re registered Republican you will have to vote Republican, the same with the Democrats; but if you’re unaffiliated you will be able to choose.”
The two early voting sites, the Spruce Pine Fire Department and the Board of Elections office, are both open for the same hours. The fire department is located at 100 Fire Fighter Way in Spruce Pine and the Board of Elections office is located in the historic former Mitchell County Courthouse building, 11 N Mitchell Ave., in Bakersville.
These two sites will be open for early voting on the following days: Feb. 12-13, Feb. 16-20, Feb. 23-27, from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. On the final day of early voting, Feb. 28, they will close early, being open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The Mitchell County Board of Elections has published the following list of important dates for this primary season:
• Jan. 12: Absentee voting by mail began
• Feb. 6: Voter registration deadline
• Feb. 12: Early voting begins
• Feb. 17: Last day to request an absentee ballot
• Feb. 28: Early voting ends
• March 3: Election Day
• March 3: Last day to return an absentee ballot