Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 31, 2021
CONTACT: press@secure-democracy.org
Secure Democracy Warns North Carolina Lawmakers Against Restricting Voting Access
S.B. 326 would establish one of the earliest absentee request deadlines in the country
RALEIGH, N.C.— In response to the North Carolina Senate Redistricting and Elections Committee hearing on S.B. 326 today, Secure Democracy issued the following statement:
"S.B. 326 would needlessly make voting more inconvenient and less accessible for North Carolina voters — especially for veterans and older voters,” said Sarah Walker, executive director of Secure Democracy. “If this bill is enacted, it would put North Carolina out of step with much of the country, creating one of the most restrictive absentee ballot deadlines in the country. North Carolina voters deserve better from their leaders than this.”
S.B. 326 would establish one of the earliest absentee request deadlines in the nation, barring voters from applying for a mail ballot within the two weeks prior to Election Day. The vast majority of states set an absentee request deadline somewhere between one and eleven days prior to Election Day. North Carolina’s current request deadline of seven days prior to Election Day is the most common deadline throughout all 50 states.
A Secure Democracy analysis of Secretary of State data found that a significant number of North Carolina voters — of all political affiliations — chose to vote by mail in the 2020 general election:
1 in 5 of all military voters in North Carolina cast their ballots by mail.
Nearly 1 in 5 of all older voters in North Carolina cast their ballots by mail.
About 1 in 7 Republican voters in North Carolina cast their ballots by mail.
S.B. 326 would also require counties to throw away all absentee ballots received after 5 p.m. on Election Day, eliminating the current three-day grace period that allows ballots mailed on or before Election Day to be delivered and counted. Had S.B. 326 been in effect for the 2020 general election, it would have required counties to throw away the vast majority of nearly 15,000 eligible votes received after Election Day. Registered Democrats and Republicans returned roughly the same number of late arriving ballots statewide.
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About Secure Democracy
Secure Democracy is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that works to improve election integrity across the United States. We educate policymakers and the public about what it takes to safeguard our voting systems. We collaborate with state leaders, election administrators, election integrity experts, and allies to ensure that all eligible citizens have the freedom to vote how they choose.