By Catharin Shepard •
Staff writer •
One-stop early voting starts Thursday, October 15 and will run until Saturday, October 31.
Hoke County voters can cast a ballot in person during one-stop early voting beginning this Thursday. Early voting will run during weekdays through the end of the month, from 8 a.m.-7:30 p.m. each day. One-stop early voting will also be available on weekends, including Saturday, October 17 from 8 a.m.-3 p.m., Sunday, October 18 from 2 p.m.-6 p.m., Saturday, October 24 from 8 a.m.-3 p.m., Sunday, October 25 from 2 p.m.-6 p.m. and Saturday, October 31 from 8 a.m.-3 p.m.
One-stop early voting in Hoke County will take place at the Board of Elections Office in the Pratt Building, 227 North Main Street in Raeford, and the Rockfish community building, 27479 Lindsay Road in Rockfish.
Although the deadline to register to vote passed October 9, eligible citizens can still register to vote using same-day registration during the one-stop early voting period. To use same-day registration, citizens must attest to their eligibility and provide proof of residence. Same-day registration is not available on Election Day.
Voters who are sending in an absentee ballot by mail must have the ballot postmarked on or before Tuesday, November 3 and the Board of Elections must receive the ballot by Friday, November 6 in order for it to be counted, according to the North Carolina State Board of Elections.
The state board strongly recommends voters who are voting by mail should get the ballot in the mail by October 27 to make sure it arrives in time. October 27 is also the last day to request a mail-in absentee ballot, according to the N.C. State Board of Elections.
Voters can also hand deliver a completed mail-in absentee ballot to the county Board of Elections. Only the voter, or a near relative or legal guardian may legally return a voter’s ballot.
For detailed instructions on how to vote by mail, go online to https://www.ncsbe.gov/voting/vote-mail.
The Hoke County Board of Elections had already received more than 1,100 mailed-in absentee ballots as of Monday afternoon, Director Towanna Jackson said. The board is meeting each Tuesday up until the day of the election to assess absentee ballots.
Voters can track a mailed-in absentee ballot using the state’s BallotTrax system. Go online to https://northcarolina.ballottrax.net/voter to access the BallotTrax system.
Registered voters who plan to vote in person on Election Day can locate the assigned polling place using the online voter registration tool available at https://vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup. The online tool also shows a sample ballot, so voters can see what races and candidates are on the ballot before they vote.
Although earlier this year there was a concern about a possible shortage of poll workers due to COVID-19, Hoke County does have enough poll workers to conduct the election, Jackson said Monday.
“I do have enough poll workers, with the ability to place some in other precincts that are short,” she wrote in an email. “I have three precincts that actually have to many but that is a good thing, you never know if someone will drop out.”
For any questions about voter registration, voting or other election matters, contact the Hoke County Board of Elections at (910) 875-9062, or visit https://www.hokecounty.net/235/Elections for more information.
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