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Note: NC Newsline published this op-ed on March 10, 2026.
Following a successful primary election with energetic voter participation all over the state, we expect voters to be even more eager to make their voice heard in the fall.
North Carolinians have a pivotal part to play in the midterms. Troublingly, our State Board of Elections is working to undermine them.
On February 27, citing budgetary constraints, the State Board instructed county boards of elections to stop distributing voter registration forms in bulk – a long-established practice all over the country.
Cost concerns aside, the directive likely violates the National Voter Registration Act.
The law requires states to make registration forms freely available, “with particular emphasis on making them available for organized voter registration programs.”
You Can Vote, the nonpartisan nonprofit I founded in 2013, is one such program. Every year, we rely on county boards of elections to provide thousands of voter registration forms, which we use to register North Carolinians of all stripes across the state.
At churches, college campuses, cultural celebrations, county jails, career fairs and anywhere else North Carolinians congregate, You Can Vote – and other civic engagement organizations – are on hand, registering voters en masse thanks to the availability of registration forms in bulk.
Restricting the flow of forms would effectively disenfranchise many of these voters, as other registration options come with their own roadblocks.
Voters are out of luck if they can’t register online because they don’t have an N.C. driver’s license or other form of DMV ID.
They’re out of luck if they don’t have transportation and time off work to register at their county board of elections office. Same goes for using same-day registration during early voting.
They’re out of luck if they don’t have access to a printer and postage, prerequisites for registering by mail.
There are many other roadblocks. Let’s start with the newest voters: The majority of 16- and 17-year-olds, who are allowed to pre-register to vote, don’t have a DMV ID. Same for the many college students – and others – who are newcomers to N.C.
What about people without access to technology? Seniors in assisted living, residents of rural areas with limited internet connectivity, people awaiting trial in county jails, residents of rehabilitation centers.
For all of these reasons and more, I hope the leadership of the State Board of Elections reverses course and reopens the flow of registration forms. Their duty is to administer elections, which includes making voter registration widely accessible.
North Carolina voters need the State Board to do its job.
Planning to organize a voter registration drive before the election? Get forms from your county board of elections while supplies last. Find your county board.
