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Is voter ID required in North Carolina?

For most voters, no ID is required. If you are not a first time voter, or at the time of your initial voter registration, you provided your North Carolina driver license number or the last four digits of your social security number and that number was validated, you will not be required to show ID when you vote. Also, you are not required to show your voter card. However, if you are a first-time voter and you did not provide your North Carolina driver license or the last four digits of your social security number when you completed your voter registration application, or one or both of those numbers could not be validated, then you will need to provide ID the first time that you vote. If you are required to show ID, you must provide one the following: 
A current and valid photo identification or
A copy of one of the following documents that shows your name and address: a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document.
Please click here to see a complete list of acceptable forms of ID.

Note, the ID that you present does not necessarily need to be a photo ID. Also, it is intended to show proof of person and not proof of residence; thus, there is no requirement that your driver license have your current address. If you will be presenting a form of non-photo ID, such as a utility bill or bank statement, then your ID will need to show your current name and address. A “current” document would be any document that is dated within six months of the date that you are presenting it to an election official.

The requirement for certain first time voters to show ID is a requirement of the Help America Vote Act of 2002. This federal law is not unique to North Carolina. It is a requirement in any state that requires a person to register prior to voting. First-time voters who are required to show ID will have been previously notified of this requirement by their County Board of Elections. If you are a first-time voter who is required to show ID and you do not bring an acceptable form of ID when you present to vote, you will be offered the opportunity to vote a provisional ballot. If you vote a provisional ballot, then you will be responsible for sending or delivering a copy of one of the acceptable forms of ID to the county board of elections within 6 (most elections) or 9 (general elections) days. If you fail to provide the county board of elections with a copy of your ID, then your provisional ballot will not be counted.