Introduction
Despite the ballot security concerns it raises, absentee-by-mail voting is an integral part of North Carolina’s election system.
Voting absentee is a three-step process. First, voters must request an absentee ballot by completing an absentee ballot request form and submitting it to their county board of elections.
After receiving the ballot, the voter must mark the ballot in the presence of two witnesses (who do not see how the voter voted), place it in the absentee ballot container envelope, and sign the envelope. The witnesses then complete and sign the witness portion of the envelope.
Finally, the voter or a near relative can return the ballot by mail, courier, or in person at the county board of elections office or an early voting site. The county board of elections must receive it by the close of polls on election day. The voter or a near relative can also hand-deliver an absentee ballot to an early voting site or the county board of elections office by the close of polls.
A commission led by former President Jimmy Carter and former U.S. Secretary of State James A. Baker III found mail voting to be inherently riskier than voting in person because “citizens voting at home may come under pressure to vote for certain candidates, and it increases the risk of fraud.” While that increased risk cannot be eliminated, it can be mitigated.
The witness requirement is an essential part of assuring the integrity of absentee voting. It is how election officials confirm that the person who completed the ballot is actually the voter to whom it was issued.
The witness requirement also helps investigators identify suspects in potential absentee-ballot fraud cases, since those engaged in such fraud usually sign as witnesses, providing evidence of a chain of custody of those ballots. Finding the same names on numerous absentee ballot container envelopes was a signal that ballot-trafficking operations were taking place in Bladen County in 2018, which forced the State Board of Elections to call for a new election for the Ninth Congressional District. Ballot trafficking involves the collection of ballots from registered voters by political operatives. Such a process is susceptible to fraud for several reasons, including the potential for the trafficker to fill in uncompleted parts of the ballots or discard ballots from people they believe support the “wrong” candidate.
Other states use signature matching to verify absentee voters. There is no reason North Carolina cannot use both as an added layer of security, but doing so would require funding for signature-matching equipment and training for election personnel. The General Assembly authorized a pilot program for the 2024 election to test the efficacy of signature matching, but the State Board of Elections failed to find a suitable vendor.
Key Facts
- Typically, between 3% and 5% of all ballots in North Carolina general elections are absentee. That proportion rose to 18% in 2020 but dropped back down to 5% in 2022.
- North Carolina is a “no-excuse” absentee-by-mail state. Voters do not have to state why they wish to receive an absentee ballot.
- North Carolina does not require signature verification for absentee ballots if the name of the signature is the same as that of the voter.
- The deadline for county election boards to receive absentee ballots is the close of polls on election day (7:30 p.m.). The North Carolina General Assembly changed the deadline to three days after election day in 2009 but changed it back to election day in 2023.
- To help voters in assisted living facilities to vote absentee by mail, county boards of elections appoint Multipartisan Assistance Teams (MATs), which are groups of volunteers from both major political parties. After Hurricane Helene in 2024, the General Assembly authorized MATs in affected counties to take possession of and deliver completed and sealed ballots.
- A 2022 court ruling allows any person designated by a disabled voter, not just a near relative, to take possession of that voter’s absentee ballot.
Recommendations
1. Tighten Regulations on Illegally Transmitted Ballots.
The State Board of Elections instructs county election boards to accept absentee ballots, no questions asked, even if they know that the ballots were transmitted by people not legally authorized to possess those ballots. The state board should, at a minimum, bring its policy more in line with North Carolina law by instructing county election boards at least to make inquiries about the origin of illegally transmitted ballots they find in their possession.
2. Allow Multipartisan Assistance Teams to Deliver Completed and Sealed Ballots.
The North Carolina State Board of Elections should issue new guidance to Multipartisan Assistance Teams, creating procedures for those teams to take possession of completed ballots from disabled voters. A 2022 court ruling allows any person to take control of a disabled voter’s ballot if the voter provides consent. Having those teams deliver ballots will help protect the votes of disabled people from ballot traffickers.
