A lawsuit from Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pushed back the initial distribution of ballots, which would have made North Carolina the first state to give out ballots. The first distribution will now happen next week.
Kennedy sued the state and won. As a result, they took his name off the ticket, which was what he wanted. Kennedy did this so as not to take votes away from former President Donald Trump, who was the candidate he backed.
On September 20, all 100 counties in the state were told by the state’s board of elections to send ballots to eligible troops and overseas citizens. On September 24, all other voters would receive their ballots. In the end, the case made the ballots come out two weeks late.
Executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, Karen Brinson Bell, said, “This schedule is only possible because of the hard work of elections professionals across this state. That work will continue all next week.” People in North Carolina can finally start voting in this important election because of them. We expect to meet the federal limit for ballot delivery.
About 166,000 people in North Carolina have asked for votes, and the state’s reprinting costs are thought to be at least $373,000. The state’s board of elections has set up ballot printers all over the state and will give military and foreign voters priority when it comes to getting their ballots.
It gives enough time for the much larger orders of absentee ballots for everyone else to be made and sent to the county boards so that the counties can get their outgoing absentee ballot packages ready to mail on September 24.
NC is a key swing state for both Trump and Kamala Harris, the vice president. For most of the 2024 presidential election, the state went toward Trump. But since Harris beat President Joe Biden to become the Democratic nominee, the race has become more competitive.
RealClearPolitics keeps track of polls and says that Trump has a 0.4-point lead over Harris in North Carolina, with 48% to 47.6%.