Current through Register Vol. 39, No. 6, September 16, 2024
(a) Station Set-Up.
All equipment and furniture in the voting enclosure shall be arranged so that
it can be seen from the public space of the voting enclosure. Each voting
enclosure shall contain at a minimum:
(1)
Check-in station, where voters may provide identification information if
required pursuant to
G.S.
163A-1144 and declare their intent to vote.
The check-in station shall include the following:
(A) Voter lists or pollbooks. If the voting
site utilizes an electronic pollbook, the site must also maintain a backup
hardcopy for use in the event of technical difficulty or disruption;
(B) Authorization to Vote Forms and labels on
Election Day or One-Stop Absentee Applications during the one-stop early voting
period, and all such other supplies as may be required by the Executive
Director of the State Board; and
(C) Guides, signage, and all other materials
as may be required by the Executive Director of the State Board for the
effective administration of elections, displayed in the manner
specified;
(2) Ballot
station, where elections officials distribute official ballot and provide
ballot-marking instructions to voters who have completed required
vote-authorization document(s);
(3)
Help station, where voters can receive assistance if there is any issue
checking in the voter, pursue provisional voting, and where voter challenges
shall be heard;
(4) Voting stations
(or "booths") shall be situated in a manner that ensures the privacy of the
voter's selections and shall be maintained in an manner clear of electioneering
materials and sample ballots. The number of booths shall not be fewer than a
minimum number determined by the county board of elections, unless a greater
number is specified by the Executive Director of the State Board based on
expected voter turnout or other factors;
(5) Exit station, where an election official
ensures ballots are appropriately placed in the tabulator or ballot box;
and
(6) Curbside station, where
qualified voters may vote curbside in accordance with
08 NCAC
10B. 0108.
(b) Technology and Connectivity. Every voting
enclosure must have access to a phone or other device, including a cell phone
when service is available in the building, that facilitates communication with
the county board of elections office and emergency services. The county board
of elections office shall keep a record of contact information for each voting
enclosure within the county and ensure all elections officials have contact
information for the county board of elections office and emergency services.
Elections officials shall monitor the phone or device.
(c) Check-in Station. Persons seeking to vote
shall enter the voting enclosure through the entrance and present at the
Check-in Station. The election official at the check-in station shall:
(1) Ask the voter to state their current name
(as required by
G.S.
163A-1137(a)). If, due to
disability, a voter is unable to state his or her name, he or she may otherwise
signal to the elections official, including by way of a person providing
assistance or through documents;
(2) Ask the voter to state the address where
he or she resided for at least 30 days as of Election Day (as required by
G.S.
163A-1137(a));
(3) If the election is a partisan primary:
Ask the voter to indicate his or her party affiliation or, if the voter is
unaffiliated, to state which of the available primary ballots he or she
prefers;
(4) If required under
G.S.
163A-1144, ask the voter to provide
acceptable identification. Examine identification document presented by the
voter;
(5) Search for and correctly
identify the voter in the pollbook or its equivalent;
(6) Make any updates or corrections to the
voter's name in the voter record;
(7) Update the voter's address in the voter
record (or alternately, complete documentation to make that change if the
process is not automatic), if the voter has moved to a new address in the
county and will have lived at the address for at least 30 days as of the date
of the election;
(8) If the voter
does not present acceptable identification necessary to verify the identity of
a previously unverified voter:
(A) Provide the
help referral form provided by the State Board; and
(B) Direct the voter to the Help
Station;
(9) Provide the
voter with an authorization to vote document or one-stop application and ask
the voter to confirm the information and sign the document. The
vote-authorizing documents should be numbered sequentially to aid in the voting
site's required ballot reconciliation process;
(10) Sign the authorization to vote document
or one-stop application before directing the voter to the ballot station where,
provided the voter is duly registered and has not been successfully challenged,
the official assigned to distribute the official ballots shall hand the voter
the official ballot that voter is entitled to vote, or that voter shall be
directed to the voting equipment that produces the official ballot;
and
(11) If a voter is not found to
be registered or cannot be directed to the ballot station:
(A) Provide the help referral form provided
by the State Board; and
(B) Refer
the voter to the help station for the purpose of receiving alternate voting
options.
(d)
Ballot Station. The ballot station official shall accept the vote-authorizing
document from the voter and review the form and ensure that it is signed by the
voter. For counties using paper ballots, the official shall retrieve the ballot
style listed on the vote-authorizing document. If the voting site has more than
one ballot style, the official must scan the barcode on the ballot style
retrieved and then scan the barcode on the vote-authorizing document to ensure
that the voter is issued the correct ballot. During one-stop absentee voting,
before issuing the ballot to the voter, the precinct official shall record the
absentee application number on the ballot. For counties whose paper ballots are
coded by style the official must record the precinct/voter tabulation district
number on the ballot. The official shall sequentially number the authorization
to vote document or one-stop application. Next, the precinct official shall:
(1) Direct the voter to the voting equipment
and provide instructions for use of the equipment as necessary;
(2) Instruct the voter to mark the ballot
before placing the ballot into the tabulator;
(3) Provide the voter with any technical
information the voter desires as necessary to enable voting; and
(4) If a voter makes a mistake and asks for a
new ballot, the ballot station official shall follow procedures pursuant to
08 NCAC
10B. 0104.
(e) Help Station. The help station is the
location in the voting enclosure for discussion with voters about irregular
situations including provisional voting or precinct transfers. A voter may be
sent to the help station if there is some issue with the voter's registration
or the voter is unable to receive a regular ballot. Each individual help
station shall have:
(1) A Voting Site Station
Guide available and on display, as provided by the Executive Director of the
State Board;
(2) Supplies as
specified by the Executive Director of the State Board; and
(3) At least one voting booth set up at or
near the station for provisional voters to mark their ballots.
(f) Exit Station. An election
official shall be posted at the exit point of a voting enclosures where paper
ballots are used and shall ensure only official ballots are deposited into the
tabulator or ballot box. The exit station official shall ensure that no
provisional ballots are placed in the ballot box and that voters do not leave
the voting enclosure with a ballot.
(g) Curbside Station. Every voting site in
the state shall have an area where qualified voters may vote curbside in
accordance with
08 NCAC
10B. 0108.
Authority
G.S.
163A-741;
163A-1137;
163A-1168;
Eff.
October 1, 2018.
