[State Board of Elections] State Board Adopts Early Voting Plans for 7 Counties, Certifies Hart Voting System | Eastern North Carolina Now

Press Release:

    Raleigh, N.C.     The NC State Board of Elections on Monday approved in-person early voting plans for the 2022 primary election for Bladen, Columbus, Gates, Lincoln, Pasquotank, Surry, and Chatham counties.

    The State Board also unanimously certified for use in North Carolina the Hart InterCivic Verity Voting 2.5 voting system as an upgrade to Verity Voting 2.2, which was certified in 2019.

    One-Stop Early Voting Plans

    Under state law, if a county board of elections does not unanimously vote to adopt a one-stop plan for the county, a county board member or members may petition the State Board to adopt a plan for the county. The other 93 counties unanimously approved early voting plans.

    The in-person early voting period for the May 17 primary election is Thursday, April 28, through Saturday, May 14, 2022.

    In all seven counties, the State Board adopted the "majority" plan, favored by a majority of county board members. Generally, the State Board favored plans that allowed Sunday voting and additional early voting sites.

    Detailed information about the proposed plans considered by the State Board is available here: 2022 Primary Election Non-Unanimous Early Voting Sites, by County (PDF).

    Hart Verity Voting 2.5 Modification

    The State Board also voted 5-0 to certify a modification to the Hart InterCivic voting system, which is used by six N.C. counties: Brunswick, Caswell, Chatham, Chowan, Onslow, and Union. These counties may now decide whether they want to use the 2.5 version instead of the previously certified 2.2 version.

    "Modifications to voting systems are a routine part of elections administration," said Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the State Board. "Voters in the counties that use Hart InterCivic voting systems should not anticipate any changes to the voting experience as a result of this new certification."

    The Verity Voting 2.5 system has been certified by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission after being tested by SLI, an accredited voting system testing lab. It is used in Idaho and under consideration for certification in eight other states.

    Hart Verity Voting 2.5 includes various security updates, as well as software functional improvements.

    More information can be found on the meeting website here: State Board Meeting Documents March 7, 2022.

    For more on voting systems in North Carolina, go here: Voting Equipment.

    Board Member Appointments

    In other business, the State Board unanimously appointed the following individuals to seats on county boards of elections:

    Republican members

    Alamance County: Gary L. Jackson

    Avery County: Crystal Lynn Vance

    Haywood County: Beverly Jean Messer-Evans

    Hyde County: Sandy Garrish Berry

    Iredell County: Jason Brian Abernethy

    Warren County: Walter John Hundley

    Democratic members

    Buncombe County: Glen Coile Shults Jr.

    Transylvania County: Judith Dianne West

• Anita Bullock Branch
• Deputy Director
• Beaufort County Board of Elections
• 1308 Highland Drive, Suite 104 / PO Box 1016
• Washington, NC 27889
• Ph: 252.946.2321
• Fax: 252.974.2962