Current:Home > MyNorth Carolina amends same-day voter registration rules in an effort to appease judge’s concerns-DB Wealth Institute B2 Reviews & Ratings
North Carolina amends same-day voter registration rules in an effort to appease judge’s concerns
lotradecoin trading rewards program View Date:2024-12-25 22:04:48
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina election officials are trying to fine-tune the way the state handles same-day voter registration as Republican legislators seek to make it easier to toss out ballots and critics argue they’re making it too hard for voters to access the polls.
On Tuesday, state election officials amended rules for verifying the addresses of people who register to vote and cast a ballot on the same day. The changes came in response to a court ruling that said people need a formal way to appeal being removed from the voter rolls if election officials send them a single piece of mail that comes back as undeliverable.
The State Board of Elections sent county election offices an updated memorandum about how to conduct same-day registration and submitted it to federal court. North Carolina offers the option to simultaneously register to vote and immediately cast a ballot during a 17-day period before a primary or general election.
The state’s primaries are March 5, with the early voting period that includes same-day registration starting Feb. 15.
In October, the Republican-controlled General Assembly passed a wide-ranging voting law that in part told officials to remove a same-day registrant’s ballot from the count if just one mailed notice to the person’s address is returned as undeliverable. The previous law required counties to send two mailers, and disqualify ballots if both pieces of mail came back as undeliverable. A ruling in a previous lawsuit discouraged local election boards from challenging such votes before the final count.
The Democratic party and voter advocacy groups sued to block the 2023 law after the General Assembly enacted it over Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Schroeder last week ruled that it was likely unconstitutional to toss out someone’s ballot without alerting them to the problem and giving the person another chance to verify their address. Schroeder cited the potential of U.S. Postal Service delays and data-entry errors by election officials that could result in a registrant being disenfranchised by mistake.
Schroeder wrote Jan. 22 that his preliminary injunction would remain in force until due process concerns are addressed. It wasn’t immediately clear Tuesday whether the updated rules would satisfy the judge.
Over 100,000 new registrants have sought same-day registration in North Carolina during each of the last two presidential general elections, and about 2,150 new same-day registration applicants failed the address verification in the November 2020 election. Slight adjustments in the same-day rules could affect this fall’s elections for president, governor and other statewide positions, which in recent cycles have been very close.
The latest guidance from state elections Executive Director Karen Brinson Bell lays out how counties should handle same-day registration. It would apply when an address verification card is returned as undeliverable no later than two days before a county’s final ballot count.
Election workers should first examine whether addresses on the card and the registration applications match. Otherwise, applicants should be contacted by mail, email and phone to give them the opportunity to submit a new identification document or to appeal in person to the county elections board on the day of the final count.
veryGood! (99)
Related
- Ex-YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki dies a year after stepping down. Who is the current CEO?
- Oklahoma deputy arrested in fatal shooting of his wife, police say
- Hiker who loses consciousness atop Mount Katahdin taken to a hospital by helicopter
- Nebraska governor signs order narrowly defining sex as that assigned at birth
- Stuffed or real? Photos show groundhog stuck inside claw machine
- Trump inflated his net worth by $2.2 billion, NYAG says in filing
- Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel and others start podcast about Hollywood strikes together
- What's your MBA GPA? Take our Summer School final exam to find out
- A slain teacher loved attending summer camp. His mom is working to give kids the same opportunity
- Trump launched an ambitious effort to end HIV. House Republicans want to defund it.
Ranking
- Usher Cancels Atlanta Concert Hours Before Show to Rest and Heal
- Internet access restored at the University of Michigan after security issue
- Couple arrested for animal cruelty, child endangerment after 30 dead dogs found in NJ home
- Newsom plans to transform San Quentin State Prison. Lawmakers and the public have had little input
- 51 Must-Try Stress Relief & Self-Care Products for National Relaxation Day (& National Wellness Month)
- The six teams that could break through and make their first College Football Playoff
- Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood's Marriage Advice for Robin Roberts Will Be Music to Your Ears
- After cuts to children's food aid, 4 in 10 poor families are skipping meals, survey finds
Recommendation
-
US shoppers sharply boosted spending at retailers in July despite higher prices
-
Step Inside the Stunning California Abode Alex Cooper and Fiancé Matt Kaplan Call Home
-
Young, spoiled and miserable in China
-
Idalia makes history along Florida's Big Bend, McConnell freezes again: 5 Things podcast
-
A weatherman had a panic attack live on air. What it teaches us.
-
Workers pay the price while Congress and employers debate need for heat regulations
-
Tampa Bay area gets serious flooding but again dodges a direct hit from a major hurricane.
-
Voters in one Iowa county reject GOP-appointed auditor who posted about 2020 election doubts