National Voter Registration Day is Tuesday, September 28, a perfect time for eligible individuals to register to vote and for current voters to make sure their information is up to date.
Eligibility requirements and other information about registering to vote can be found at ncsbe.gov. Voters can check their registration status and information via the State Board of Elections’ Voter Search tool.
National Voter Registration Day is a nonpartisan civic holiday raising awareness for voter registration and encouraging Americans to register to vote. Since the first Voter Registration Day in 2012, more than 4.5 million voters nationwide have registered to vote on the holiday.
“Voting is a critical way to make an impact in your city or town, county, state, and country,” said Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the State Board. “If you’re eligible, we hope to see you at the polls this fall.”
As of Saturday, September 25, 2021, there are more than 7.15 million registered voters in North Carolina. The voter registration deadline for the November 2, 2021 municipal elections is Friday, October 8.
Eligible individuals have options when registering to vote. They may complete a voter registration application (PDF) and return the form to their county board of elections. Applications can be emailed, faxed, mailed, or returned in person to your board of elections office.
In addition, online voter registration is available through the North Carolina DMV for anyone who has a North Carolina driver’s license or has used other DMV services. The DMV website also allows voters to update their registrations (except name changes). For more information and a link to this service, see the Online Voter Registration section of ncsbe.gov.
For an overview of registering to vote, view the video Registering to Vote in North Carolina.
If an individual misses the regular registration deadline, they may register and vote on the same day during the one-stop early voting period. To see which municipalities offer early voting, use the 2021 Municipal Voter Tool.
Qualifications to Vote
To register, a person must:
- Be a U.S. citizen.
- Live in the county of registration for at least 30 days before the date of the election.
- Be at least 18 years old by the date of the general election. 16- and 17-year-olds may preregister to vote.
- 17-year-olds may vote in a primary election if they will be 18 at the time of the general election.
- Not be serving a sentence for a felony conviction, including probation, parole, or post-release supervision. There is one exception. If you are serving a felony sentence, you are eligible if the following are true:
- You are serving an extended term of probation, post-release supervision, or parole;
- you have outstanding fines, fees, or restitution; and
- you do not know of another reason that your probation, post-release supervision, or parole was extended.
Update Registration
The voter registration application available on the State Board’s website may be used to change any voting information, including name, address, and party affiliation. The change notification must be signed and sent to the board of elections by the voter registration deadline.
Updates to name, address, and party affiliation must be signed, but can be provided by fax or email. A wet ink (physical) signature is not required.
DMV customers may update their voter registration residential or mailing address and party affiliation through the DMV service. This service does not currently allow voters to change their name.
For more information, see Updating Registration.
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