Absentee Voting Officially Underway For March Primary

This Monday, all 100 County Board of Elections across North Carolina began mailing absentee ballots to voters who request one for the 2026 primary election. This is the official start of voting for the 2026 March 3rd primary.  

Voters who have already requested absentee-by-mail ballots should receive them in the coming days. In North Carolina, any eligible voter can request, receive, and vote an absentee ballot by mail. Find more information at  Vote By Mail. 

The absentee ballot request deadline is Tuesday, Feb. 17. Election officials urge voters who wish to vote by mail to request their ballot as early as possible to ensure there is time to receive it and then send it back to their county board of elections so that it is received no later than 7:30 p.m. on Election Day – March 3. 

State law previously provided for a grace period if your ballot was postmarked on or before Election Day and received up to three days after the election. That is no longer the case. The ballot must be at the county board office, not in the mail, by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day.