WATAUGA COUNTY

 2024 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION EARLY VOTING SCHEDULE

OCTOBER 17 - 19	9:00 AM UNTIL 5:00 PM
SUNDAY OCTOBER 20	1:00 PM UNTIL 5:00 PM
OCTOBER 21 – 26	9:00 AM UNTIL 5:00 PM
SUNDAY OCTOBER 27	1:00 PM UNTIL 5:00 PM
OCTOBER 28 – NOVEMBER 1	9:00 AM UNTIL 5:00 PM
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 2	8:00 AM UNTIL 3:00 PM

EARLY VOTING LOCATIONS

• WATAUGA COUNTY ADMINISTRATION BUILDING
  Commissioners’ Board Room
  814 W. King Street, Boone
• BLOWING ROCK AMERICAN LEGION BUILDING
  333 Wallingford Street, Blowing Rock
• DEEP GAP FIRE DEPARTMENT
  6583 Old 421 S, Deep Gap
• MEAT CAMP FIRE DEPARTMENT
  4797 NC Hwy 194 N, Boone
• PLEMMONS STUDENT UNION (ASU CAMPUS)
  Blue Ridge Ballroom
  263 Locust Street, Boone
  (Parking lot at 644 Howard Street)
• WESTERN WATAUGA COMMUNITY CENTER
  1081 Old US Hwy 421, Sugar Grove

** Photo ID is required. If you are registered to vote in Watauga County, you may vote at ANY early voting site you choose. Same Day Registration is available at every early voting site, but you must provide proof of residence in Watauga County.

If you lost your photo ID due to Helene, you have options:

• Fill out a Photo ID Exception Form at your voting site or send the form back with your absentee ballot. (A blank Exception Form will arrive with your absentee packet.) Check the box for “Exception 3: Victim of a Natural Disaster.” Make sure to sign the form.
• Go to your county board of elections office. If you are a registered voter, they can take your photo and print an acceptable ID on the spot. For details, go to Get a Free Voter Photo ID.
• Get a free ID from an NCDMV office in your area. For details, see State IDs | NCDMV.

For details about North Carolina’s photo ID requirement, including a list of all acceptable IDs, go to BringItNC.gov.

Call (828) 265-8061 if you have any questions.

 

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Watauga County Board of Elections: Despite Hurricane, the November Election Will Happen  

Boone, NC 

Despite the hardship that Hurricane Helene has brought to our community and Western North Carolina, the Watauga County Board of Elections is hard at work preparing for the November 5, 2024 election. Though the hurricane has caused significant disruptions, our election staff and the bipartisan Board are determined to ensure that every eligible Watauga County voter can vote in this cycle. The Board’s motto is: “adapt and overcome.”

To reassure our community that elections officials are hard at work preparing for the election and are diligently handling hurricane-related challenges, the Board wishes to bring the following developments to the public’s attention:

* Since Monday, September 30, election staff have been back in the Board’s office in the Watauga County courthouse on King Street. Staff are taking calls (828 265-8061) and can meet by appointment. 

* Election staff is in regular contact with the North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE), county management, and representatives in the General Assembly, and is coordinating with local agencies.

* Election staff have evaluated tabulators and laptop computers used for elections and determined that they have not been damaged. Security of all election facilities and equipment has been maintained. 

* Despite internet and cell phone outages, election staff have established a secure connection to the state information system, allowing staff to process registrations and requests for absentee ballots.

* Election staff and the Board are assessing the viability and availability of voting sites, as well as the availability of election officials. 

* Election staff have received absentee ballots and mailed out absentee ballots. They have also received and sent out electronic ballots to military and overseas voters. 

* Consistent with state law, the Board will meet on Thursday, October 3 to begin approving “absentee by mail” ballots. The Board will continue to hold regular meetings for this purpose through election day. 

* Beginning the week of October 8, election staff will begin training election officials. 

* The Board is grateful for the dedication of our election officials, who have made clear that they are available and ready to work. 

* The Board encourages the public to monitor developments at its website: http://wataugacounty.org/App_pages/Dept/BOE/home.aspx

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Click on the red Ballot Style below to view the sample ballot.

BALLOT STYLE B0001 (Bald Mountain, Cove Creek, Meat Camp, North Fork, Part of Brushy Fork, Part of New River 2)

BALLOT STYLE B0002 (Beaver Dam, Beech Mountain, Laurel Creek, Shawneehaw, Watauga, Part of Brushy Fork)

BALLOT STYLE B0003 (Blowing Rock, Elk, and Stony Fork)

BALLOT STYLE B0004 (Blue Ridge precinct only)

BALLOT STYLE B0005 (Boone 1, Boone 2, Boone 3, New River 1, New River 3, Part of Brushy Fork, and Part of New River 2)

There are five (5) different ballot styles in Watauga County for the 2024 General Election. Please note these ballot styles are correlated to the new County Commissioner Districts established in 2023. There are maps of the Commission Districts on our Notices page. You may also use the NC Board of Elections voter lookup tool to see where you are registered to vote and what your sample ballot is. That tool can be accessed by going to https://vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/ . Should you have any questions, please call our office at (828)265-8061.

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Buffer Zones are the areas outside of polling sites where no political signs can be placed and where no political activity can occur. To view the Buffer Zone for each Early Voting and Election Day polling site CLICK HERE.

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The Watauga County Board of Elections meets the second Tuesday of each month at 5:00 pm in the County Administration Building located at 814 W. King Street, Boone. The public is encouraged to attend.

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If you would like to request an Absentee by Mail ballot for the 2024 Presidential Election, CLICK HERE.

Absentee by Mail Ballots will be mailed out beginning September 6.

The absentee ballot return deadline for the 2024 general election is 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024.

If you have ANY questions about the process, please call us at (828)265-8061.

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Absentee and Other Election Time Meetings

The Watauga County Board of Elections will meet at 5:00 pm on the following dates to approve absentee by mail ballots: October 1, 3, 8, 10, 15, 22, 29, 31 and November 4.

The Board will meet on November 7 at 5:00 pm to approve supplemental absentee by mail ballots and address any cures needed for Provisional voters.

The Board will meet on November 13 at 5:00 pm to determine eligibility of Provisional Ballots and, if necessary, to approve mailed UOCAVA ballots.

The Board will meet on November 14 if necessary to approve mailed UOCAVA ballots at 5:00 pm.

These meetings will be held in the Watauga County Courthouse, located at 842 W. King Street in Boone, and are open to the public.

To view the UOCAVA (Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act) notice CLICK HERE .

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Watauga County has new County Commissioner Districts and a new method of election for them. North Carolina Session Law 2023-147 was passed on October 25, 2023. As a result, County Commissioners must live in the district for which they seek office as before; however, now voters can only vote for the one Commissioner that represents their district. Previously, all Watauga County voters voted for all Commissioner candidates.

The districts have been realigned to contain roughly the same population in each district. Each candidate is elected to a four-year term. Commissioner Districts 3, 4, and 5 are up for election in 2024. Commissioner Districts 1 and 2 are up for election in 2026. Candidate filing opens at Noon on December 4^th, 2023, and closes at Noon on December 15^th.

District 1 is comprised of precincts Boone 1, Boone 2, Boone 3, and part of Brush Fork.

District 2 is comprised of precincts New River 1, New River 3, and part of New River 2.

District 3 is comprised of precincts Beaver Dam, Laurel Creek, Shawneehaw, Watauga, Beech Mountain, and part of Brush Fork.

District 4 is comprised of precincts Bald Mountain, Cove Creek, Meat Camp, North Fork, part of Brushy Fork, and part of New River 2.

District 5 is comprised of precincts Blowing Rock, Blue Ridge, Elk, and Stony Fork.

District Map – Click Here
Map of District 3 - Click here
Map of District 4 - Click here
Map of District 5 - Click here

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The mission of the Watauga County Board of Elections is to provide the highest level of professional standards to ensure accurate, honest, and fair elections through accountability and integrity and to provide all citizens our services in the most efficient, effective, and timely manner.

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