Absentee voting for North Carolina’s 2026 primary election will begin on Monday, January 12. County boards of elections across the state, including Brunswick County, will start sending absentee-by-mail ballots to registered voters who have requested them.
According to the North Carolina State Board of Elections, “This marks the start of voting for North Carolina’s March 3 primary election. 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 deadline to request an absentee ballot is Tuesday, February 17. Election officials recommend that voters submit their requests as early as possible to allow enough time for processing and mailing. All completed absentee ballots must be received by the county board office no later than 7:30 p.m. on Election Day, March 3. The previous grace period allowing ballots postmarked by Election Day to arrive up to three days after has been eliminated; ballots must now physically arrive at the board office by the deadline.
“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,” according to state officials.
In this primary election, voters will choose party nominees for advancement to the general election on November 3. Party-affiliated voters will receive a ballot with candidates from their party only. Unaffiliated voters may select a Democratic or Republican ballot or a nonpartisan one if available in their area. The Green Party and Libertarian Party are not holding primaries in North Carolina in 2026.
The State Board provides sample ballots through its Voter Search tool online. “Sample ballots are available for individual voters by locating their voter record in the State Board of Elections’ Voter Search… Note: Unaffiliated voters will have at least two ballot styles listed, and may have three ballot styles if they are eligible to vote in a non-partisan contest, such as a referendum.”
Absentee-by-mail voting requires two witnesses or a notary public to sign the return envelope confirming that they saw the voter complete their ballot. Voters must also include a photocopy of an acceptable photo ID with their mailed ballot or fill out an exception form if unable to provide ID.
Key dates include:
– January 12: Absentee ballots mailed
– February 6: Voter registration deadline (5 p.m.)
– February 12: In-person early voting begins; same-day registration available
– February 17: Absentee ballot request deadline (5 p.m.)
– February 28: In-person early voting ends (3 p.m.)
– March 3: Primary Election Day; absentee return deadline (7:30 p.m.)
– March 13: County canvass meetings
Military and overseas citizens have different deadlines for registration and absentee voting.
For additional local context, recent education data shows that college readiness among Brunswick County students varies by subject area according to ACT test results from the 2022–23 school year:
– Of senior students taking science on the ACT, about one in five were considered ready for college (source).
– Among juniors taking science on the ACT, roughly one-fifth demonstrated college readiness (source).
– For reading proficiency among seniors taking the ACT, about three in ten met college-ready benchmarks (source).
– Junior reading scores showed about one-quarter meeting readiness standards (source).
– Senior math results indicated less than one-fifth reached college-ready levels (source).
– Junior math scores reflected similar trends with fewer than one-sixth considered ready (source).
More information is available through Brunswick County’s Absentee Voting Page and its dedicated page for the upcoming election.
