Voting today? What you need to know before heading to your polling place

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) - There are some things you need to know before you head out to the door to vote today.

A big change for this year, you’ll need a photo ID in order to vote. That doesn’t have to be a driver’s license, there are other forms of ID that will be accepted at polling places, like a military ID, non-operator’s ID card issued by the DMV, or even a passport would work.

Brunswick County’s Elections Director Sara LaVere says if you forget your photo ID or don’t have one, then you need to fill out an exemption form at your polling place.

“And what that is, it’s telling the precinct official why they don’t have the photo identification. So, if it’s simply that they forgot it, they would be able to cast a provisional ballot and bring the photo ID to their board of elections before the county canvass, which is 10 days after the election. They could also tell us the reason they don’t have a photo ID, you know, maybe they didn’t have their birth certificate, so they couldn’t get to the DMV, or they didn’t have transportation or any number of reasons why they don’t have a photo ID,” LaVere said.

Polls are open from 6:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. As long as you are in line by 7:30 p.m., then you will be able to vote at your assigned polling place.

“Check your voter registration before you go to vote. The state board of elections has a voter lookup tool, it lets you put in your name. And you can confirm that you’re registered to vote at your current address. It can tell you where your election day polling places. And you can also find out before you go whether you have a ballot this election or not. This is a municipal election, so not every registered voter is eligible to vote. It’s only those that live within the boundary of a municipality,” LaVere said. “If anybody has any trouble with voting,, questions about the voting process, not sure where to go, has trouble looking up their registration, just call their local county board of elections. All of the Board of Elections Office will have people on hand to help answer those questions and make sure people know what to do.”

For those heading to the polls, Wave Transit is offering free fare on Election Day for its Fixed-route, RideMICRO, Paratransit and UNCW shuttle services.

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