2022 Statewide Primary Election Turnout

Overview

North Carolina's 2022 statewide primary was Tuesday, May 17, 2022. The purpose of a primary is to narrow the field of candidates for the general election. The May 2022 election was unique because it also included municipal contests rescheduled from 2021.

Explore turnout statistics for the May 2022 elections as they become available, as well as comparative statistics for recent even-year primary elections.

2022 Statewide Primary Voter Turnout

In the table below, see the breakdown of voter turnout for North Carolina's 2022 primaries.

Election Eligible Voters Ballots Cast % Turnout
2022 Primary 7,236,469 1,432,819 20%

2022 Statewide Primary Voting Methods

In the table below, see the breakdown of voting method used by voters in North Carolina's 2022 primaries.

Election Absentee By Mail Early Voting In Person on Election Day Provisional
2022 Primary 2% 39% 59% <1%

2022 Statewide Primary Voting Turnout, by Race

In the table below, see the breakdown of voter turnout by race in North Carolina's 2022 primaries.

Race Votes Voters Turnout
Asian 8,674 111,461 7.8%
Black or African American 261,170 1,490,236 17.5%
American Indian or Alaska Native 7,196 53,838 13.4%
Two Or More Races 4,393 42,812 10.3%
Other 15,320 218,449 7.0%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 41 495 8.3%
Undesignated 47,929 612,897 7.8%
White 1,087,630 4,759,944 22.8%

2022 Statewide Primary Voting Turnout, by Ethnicity

In the table below, see the breakdown of voter turnout by ethnicity in North Carolina's 2022 primaries.

Ethnicity Votes Voters Turnout
Hispanic or Latino 13,767 250,497 5.5%
Not Hispanic or Not Latino 1,163,453 5,186,813 22.4%
Undesignated 255,133 1,852,823 13.8%

 

Absentee-by-Mail and Early Voting

This section includes data related to absentee and early voting in the 2022 primary election.

Daily absentee and early voting PDF reports:

Early Voting Stats:

In the table below, see the number of voters who cast a ballot in person during the early voting period, by ballot party type.

Election - Ballot Party Type Number of Early Voters
2022 Primary - Democratic Ballot 295,732
2022 Primary - Republican Ballot 287,657
2022 Primary - Nonpartisan Ballot 1,762
Total 585,225

Comparative Statistics

Below, explore the turnout data for recent statewide primaries. Navigate the visualizations at the bottom of the page to find early voting data for recent statewide primaries.

Previous Statewide Primary Voter Turnout

In the table below, see the breakdown of voter turnout for the four most recent statewide primary elections, including two midterm primaries and two presidential-year primaries.

Election Eligible Voters Ballots Cast % Turnout
2020 Primary 6,940,995 2,164,731 31%
2018 Primary (midterm) 6,674,290 957,627 14%
2016 Primary 6,511,143 2,323,590 37%
2014 Primary (midterm) 6,516,126 1,028,600 16%

Previous Statewide Primary Voting Methods

In the table below, see the breakdown of voting method used by voters in the four most recent statewide primary elections, including two midterm primaries and two presidential-year primaries. 

Election Absentee By Mail Early Voting In Person on Election Day Provisional
2020 Primary 1% 36% 62% <1%
2018 Primary (midterm) 1% 30% 69% <1%
2016 Primary 2% 29% 68% ~1%
2014 Primary (midterm) 1% 25% 74% <1%

Previous Statewide Primary Voter Turnout, by Party

In the tables below, see the breakdown of voters who voted in the four most recent statewide Democratic and Republican primary elections, broken down by voters' party affiliation. Data for the Libertarian primary elections were not included for comparison since there will be no Libertarian primary in 2022.

Democratic Primary Turnout

Election Democrats Who Voted Unaffiliated Who Voted
2020 Democratic Primary 954,976 388,381
2018 Democratic Primary (midterm) 431,875 112,481
2016 Democratic Primary 928,660 231,909
2014 Democratic Primary (midterm) 450,194 60,873

Republican Primary Turnout

Election Republicans Who Voted Unaffiliated Who Voted
2020 Republican Primary 606,822 201,614
2018 Republican Primary (midterm) 294,295 113,425
2016 Republican Primary 846,545 309,414
2014 Republican Primary (midterm) 393,439 112,728

Data sources: voter history stats for 2020, 2018, 2016, and 2014 primary elections.

Previous Statewide Primary Absentee by Mail and Early Voting Turnout

For the 2018 statewide primary, more than 295,000 North Carolinians voted via early voting or absentee by mail.

Daily absentee PDF reports from 2018 are available here: