Durham County’s municipal primary election is on Oct. 10, with the early voting period running from Sept. 21 to Oct 7.
The election will decide the two candidates for Durham's mayor and six candidates for Durham City Council, who will move forward to the Nov. 7 municipal general election. The Chronicle has you covered with a guide to where and how you can vote this year.
What to know about voter cards
Starting with the 2023 municipal elections, all voters will be required to provide a photo ID to vote in North Carolina.
Duke students can make use of Duke Student Voter ID cards, which have been approved by the N.C. Board of Elections as a valid form of identification during the 2023 municipal elections and the 2024 general elections. The voter ID cards are provided to students for free upon request. Other forms of valid photo identification include North Carolina driver’s licenses, other DMV-issued IDs, U.S. passports and N.C. voter ID photo cards.
However, registering for a Duke Voter ID card is not the same as registering for elections. Students can register online, via mail or in person. If a student has moved to a different part of Durham or campus, they must re-register to vote.
If students are staying on the same campus as when they last voted, they do not need to re-register.
To vote in the 2023 election, individuals must reside within the boundaries of the City of Durham or the Durham County portion of the town of Cary. College students who are U.S. citizens can register to vote in their home state or the state in which they are studying.
Where can I vote?
A full guide to polling places in Durham was published by the Durham County Board of Elections.
Voters must go to their assigned polling site on election day, which can be found through the Election Day Polling place search.
For students who live on West Campus and are registered with 1 Duke University West Campus as their address, the polling place is the Patterson Recreation Center. Those living on East Campus and registered with 1 Duke University East Campus as their address can find their polling place at the George Watts Elementary School.
Students who choose to vote early can choose between five locations. Those who choose to vote by requesting an absentee ballot by mail must return their ballots to the Board of Elections or have the ballots postmarked by 5 p.m. on Oct. 10.
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Ishita Vaid is a Trinity junior and a senior editor of The Chronicle's 120th volume.