Due to Helene, early voting might get late start in western North Carolina

As of Tuesday, local elections offices in 13 of the 25-county federal-disaster declaration area of western North Carolina remained closed.

"The destruction is unprecedented and this level of uncertainty this close to Election Day is daunting," said Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections.

Absentee-by-mail voting started on Sept. 24, two weeks late because of litigation over removing Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s, name from — and the subsequent reprinting of — ballots.

Then Helene carved a catastrophic path through western North Carolina, taking lives and destroying property in 28 counties, including the three that are part of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Tribal Area.

Assessment of early voting sites underway

"As county offices get back up and running, they will begin to assess early voting sites and Election Day polling places to see the extent of the damage and which facilities won't be available," Brinson Bell told reporters in a virtual news conference Tuesday morning, a little more than two weeks before the start of early in-person voting on Oct. 17.

"Once we know this information, we can better determine how to provide in-person voting," she added, estimating initial assessments wouldn't be done until the middle or end of the week.

"We don't know this yet, but there may be polling places affected by mudslides, there may be polling places inaccessible because of damaged roads, there may be polling places with trees that have fallen on them," Brinson Bell said.

Some designated early voting sites might have to be relocated altogether or, perhaps, could have temporary structures erected on them.

"It was during Hurricane Dorian that we actually had voting from a tent that was stood up by the National Guard that made voting possible in Hyde County," Brinson Bell recalled, referring to the 2019 storm's impact on eastern North Carolina.

Elections officials might seek help from legislators

Brinson Bell said that while the election schedule might get altered — or polling locations might change — to accommodate storm-affected voters, the procedures for ensuring a safe, secure election will not.

"Our system will know that someone has requested an absentee ballot and been provided that ballot," she said. "No matter whether we have to send them an additional one and spoil the original one, our system will keep track of that."

And on Election Day, Brinson Bell added, "we'll be dealing with precinct poll books and making sure that they have checked into their proper precinct polling place even if that polling place has been moved."

Brinson Bell said she and state elections staff have been carefully considering what measures they might ask legislators at the North Carolina General Assembly to consider enacting for the sake of voters in storm-affected areas.

Lawmakers are scheduled to meet on Oct. 9 for a short session and could take up storm recovery funding at that time.

In response to reporters' questions, Brinson Bell said such measures could include allowing voters in western North Carolina to drop off absentee ballots at polling sites on Election Day just as they can do during the early voting period.

Another request could be the adoption of a grace period for the receiving and counting of properly postmarked mail-in ballots that arrive after Election Day.

Until last year, the state had a three-day, post-Election Day grace period for properly postmarked ballots. But that extension was eliminated by a Republican-backed law and now voters must return their absentee ballots by the close of polls on Election Day.

The U.S. Postal Service has issued a notice of service disruptions across western North Carolina due to Helene.

The state elections board has set up a dedicated web page to inform storm-impacted voters seeking information.

Election Day is 35 days away — Nov. 5.