Skip to content
Democracy SENTRY
Voting in your state
UpdateNorth CarolinaTuesday, October 27, 2026

Buncombe County explained how early votes are secured in North Carolina

Election officials described the daily transport and auditing process for ballots from early voting sites.

Reporting by
WLOS local news
“11 hours ago From the polls to election night: How Buncombe County keeps early votes secure With early voting underway in North Carolina, election officials in Buncombe County are explaining what happens to ballots after they're cast.”, Tuesday, October 27, 2026
Read the full story
What happened

Buncombe County election officials explained the security measures in place for early ballots as North Carolina's early voting period is underway. Elections Services Director Corinne Duncan said ballots from all 13 early voting sites are transported daily to a warehouse for auditing. Bipartisan teams, observers, cameras, and physical locks are all part of the process.1

Duncan said discrepancies are rare because of the checks at each polling location.1

13
early voting sites in Buncombe County1
What it means in North Carolina

What this means for North Carolina voters

Early voting in North Carolina runs from Thursday October 15 until 3 p.m. on Saturday October 31, 2026.2

Key dates in North Carolina

Election Day in 7 days
  1. Fri, Oct 9 · passed
    Registration deadline
  2. Thu, Oct 15 · passed
    Early voting begins
  3. Tue, Oct 20 · passed
    Last day for mail ballot applications
  4. Tue, Nov 3 · 7 days
    Election Day; Mail ballots must arrive
  5. Fri, Nov 13 · 17 days
    County/Local certification
  6. Thu, Dec 10 · 44 days
    State certification

Every date in North Carolina, and who certifies the election

More on this story
North Carolina · Oct 26
Ballot tabulator malfunction disrupted early voting in Greensboro
Reporting by WXII
The answers behind this
Voting machines and election securityVoting in North Carolina, 2026How are votes counted and certified in North Carolina?When does early voting start?

Explore this issue

OverviewUpdates In depthBorder Patrol agents at Florida voting site were trying to vote, official says In depthProtect Democracy sues DOJ over planned national voter database In depthGOP operative's Pennsylvania home used by out-of-state voters in 2024 In depthDallas County cut early voting satellite sites to two for 2026 In depthTrump administration demanded California counties segregate ballots In depthEarly voting began in Westchester County for November 3 election In depthEarly voting opened in Rockland County, New York In depthMichigan county clerk tried to remove voters, state intervened In depthElon Musk spent approximately $190 million on Texas Senate race In depthJohnson County, Iowa, brought voting to a high school football game In depthAdvocacy group outlines what it calls interference efforts in 2026 midterms In depthTrump warned of foreign meddling and federal agents searched voter rolls

Sources

  1. WLOS local news, https://wlos.com/news/local/polls-election-buncombe-county-early-votes-voting-ballot-republican-democrat-gop-politics-senate-house-race-results-2026-midterms-north-carolina · Tuesday, October 27, 2026
  2. Vote.org, North Carolina Election Center, https://www.vote.org/state/north-carolina/

Ask

Have a question about voting in North Carolina?

Ask it here. If we do not have the answer yet, we will find it.