According to the Associated Press, a record 353,166 people cast ballots at more than 400 early voting sites in North Carolina last Thursday. That compares to the 348,599 that turned out on the first day of voting in October 2020.
The number of ballots cast is expected to increase as county election boards continue to upload data. According to the AP report, authorities say they have received no reports of voting problems or irregularities.
North Carolinians were hard hit by Hurricane Helene just weeks ago, killing at least 246 people. It was the deadliest hurricane to hit the U.S. since Katrina in 2005, but despite the devastation inflicted on the state, with tens of thousands of people still without clean running water, voters still turned out in large numbers to vote.
North Carolina, along with Pennsylvania and Georgia, are expected to decide this year’s election.
