When it comes to voter registration we are one of the most innovative organizations in NC, and we are driven by a sense of urgency as we move toward the election of 2024, and beyond.
We are focusing on new ways, primarily through technology and educational messaging, so that we can improve voter registration and get citizens to the polls. According to the NC State Board of Elections (4/15/24) one in four eligible voters are not registered. That’s about two million people. We are trying to identify as many as possible who have not registered and get them to vote, especially since the 2024 election is expected to be extremely close. The Presidential winner in 2008 won by less than 14,000 votes; in 2012 the difference was 92,004; in 2016 the difference was 173,315; and in 2020 the difference was 74,483 ( 1.3% of the vote). Also, in the 2020 election 1,989,950 registered voters in NC did not vote, and the current Chief Justice of the NC Supreme Court won by 401 votes out of 5.4 million votes cast.
A member of our board of directors and a former appellate judge in NC, Wanda Bryant, quotes the saying, “We can no longer afford to do things the same old way and expect different results.” We are trying to get better results, and we are trying to change the perception of many unregistered voters that their vote doesn’t matter because it doesn’t affect their lives.
We are taking a fresh look at registration and voting and we are seeking cost-effective, data driven results to guide us as we move forward to the next election. In taking that “fresh look” we reviewed the webpage of the NC State Board of Elections and we continue to review it because it is the ultimate authority on information related to elections in this state, and voter registration is only part of the picture. It is nonpartisan. It serves the public. We encourage you to go there www.ncsbe.gov/registering for any questions you may have about the process, and if you can’t get the answer, contact us and we will try to help.