NC ELECTIONS LIVE UPDATES: Scenes from Duke’s campus, Durham polling locations

Election Day is finally here. In a final push to get Blue Devils to the polls, Duke student organizations are engaging in mobilization efforts across campus.

Read The Chronicle’s live coverage of scenes from around campus and several Durham polling locations today as residents of the Tar Heel state await the final results of this historic election cycle.

Gothic Grill, 12 a.m.

11/06/24 12:52 a.m.

At approximately midnight the TVs shut off and election coverage stopped streaming in Gothic Grill. The few remaining students filed out the back doors, some appearing defeated. 

Sophomore Jack Sabo arrived at Gothic about three hours earlier and described the energy as high — especially after the North Carolina gubernatorial race was called. However, since that moment, he said the energy levels have waned. 

“People are upset,” said sophomore Ryan Rubin of Trump’s victory in North Carolina. 

“You would hear cheers about every 20 minutes for whatever small state that Kamala won, and then once Kamala lost North Carolina and started losing generally, people died down,” he added. 

Fox News is streaming on one TV, with CNN on the other. Life-size cutouts of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and his VP pick JD Vance stand next to the TVs and campaign merchandise set out on a table in front.

Many of the attendees expressed their optimism that Trump will win. Each new race called in favor of the Republicans drew a chorus of cheers from the crowd.

Cheers erupt amongst the onlookers as CNN calls the Texas senate race for Ted Cruz — the latest in a series of races called in favor of the Republican Party.

-Morgan Chu

Wannamaker and Kilgo Quads, 10:49 p.m.

11/05/24 11:13 p.m.

With many crucial battleground states being too early or close to call, some students on campus are deciding to watch the coverage in residence halls.

In Wannamaker Quad, the two common rooms appear to be split, with one streaming NBC News’ coverage, and the other with some residents studying.

Some students are also opting to watch in their own rooms.

Dalys Ragland, a sophomore from High Point, N.C., is watching in her own dorm because, “with the schoolwork and stuff going on in [her] schedule, [she] wanted to be somewhere where [she] could watch it in a calm environment.”

Ragland, who identifies a Republican, feels the election is very important. She said she is “prioritizing this election heavily” since she “think[s] the future of this country depends on it.”

The common room in Dollard House of Kilgo Quad also has a crowd of people watching coverage on CNN as key race alerts across various states begin to come through.

-Mekhi Patterson

Gothic Grill, 9:30 p.m.

11/05/24 9:46 p.m.

Gothic Grill is at about three-quarters capacity as students watch the election results on the TVs, monitor the polls on their computers and do homework.

Sophomore Pranav Hooda said when he arrived at Gothic at 7:30 p.m. it was packed with “every seat taken,” and there was a lot of energy. Since then, it has emptied out a bit.

“I like that everyone at every table is filled with people of different views … the commentary is civil but different, so I like it,” sophomore Amelia Skena said.

Hooda described how every once and a while, a table will cheer in celebration of a result.

-Ava Littman 

Krafthouse, 8:09 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

11/05/24 9:45 p.m.

Krafthouse was buzzing at 8 p.m. — while most students opted to watch the live election coverage from the comfort of indoors, others congregated to the monitor outside.

Within an hour, however, the crowd trickled out, leaving few onlookers.

Krafthouse had a slow night and low undergraduate turnout overall, which is likely due to other watch parties happening at other campus locations.

- Addison Smith

Polis: Center for Politics and Duke Votes watch party, 7:30 p.m.

11/05/24 7:30 p.m.

Krafthouse, 6:23 p.m.

11/05/24 6:49 p.m.

Students have started to congregate in a Kilgo common room and The Devil’s Krafthouse to watch the live election coverage by News Nation.

Thus far, Election Day polls have only closed in parts of Indiana and Kentucky. The next wave, which encompasses mostly eastern states, will start at 7 p.m. Expect more watch parties to pop up around campus as the night progresses.

If you haven’t voted yet in North Carolina, there is still time. Polling locations across the state will have their doors open until 7:30 p.m., and as long as you are in line when the polls close, you can still cast your ballot.

-Addison Smith

Patterson, 6 p.m.

11/05/24 7:57 p.m.

Patterson Recreation Center, the polling location for Duke students living on West Campus or in the Swift Apartments had a lot of energy — even at 6 p.m. 

“DJ at the polls” was blasting music and making voting seem like a party. Voters could be seen dancing near the DJ booth.

North Carolina Asian Americans Together (NCAT) was handing out food and water to voters as part of their Empower U Initiative which aims to mobilize the student vote across North Carolina.

Grace Conerly, an NCAT volunteer, said the longest line she saw today was three hours. Another NCAT volunteer, Edgar Arrieta, shared that he’s seen quite a few Duke students arrive at the polling location through the Durham Drives program. 

Vote For Equality, a student-led campaign, also had a table set up with Harris-Walz signs, food and voting information. 

N.C. polls closed at 7:30 p.m. but anyone in line at their polling location by that time was able to vote.

-Ava Littman

George Watts Elementary School, 5:30 p.m.

11/05/24 6:09 p.m.

As the sun goes down, there’s a slow but steady stream of voters at George Watts Elementary School. Duke students living on East Campus and Durham residents alike are heading in to cast their vote.

Volunteers from Durham Democrats and Young People’s alliance line the sidewalk handing out candidate information and sample ballots. 

Some voters, including Duke students have walked out of the school with provisional ballots.

First-year Ritvik Korrapati shared that although he registered to vote on BC Plaza, when he showed up to George Watts, his registration was not in the system. Therefore, he was given a provisional ballot to fill out.

“My vote is probably not gonna get counted for like a week,” he said. “… I have to check in 10 days if my vote counted or not.”

Other Duke students described an easy and pleasant experience with their first time voting. First-year Ashley Aufderheide and her two friends walked form East Campus to vote at the elementary school, which they said was a “very easy process.”

“We missed the early voting window too, so we were kind of anticipating that it was gonna be difficult on [the] day of,” Aufderheide said. “But it was super easy for us.”

-Ava Littman

BC Plaza, 3:30 p.m. 

11/05/24 4:16 p.m.

Duke Democrats tabled on the plaza from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Representatives focused their efforts on getting out the vote, partnering with nonpartisan organizations such as Duke Votes and Young People's Alliance.

Duke Votes has also been tabling since 10 a.m. and plans to continue into the afternoon.

Duke Democrats President Annika Aristimuno, a junior, has been on BC Plaza since 10 a.m., “asking every single person that walks past if they’ve voted yet.” 

Aristimuno shared that Duke Democrats is working with Bull City Votes and Durham Drives to provide free rides for students to their polling locations. Students living on West Campus or in Swift Apartments can vote at the W.I. Patterson Recreation Center, while those living on East Campus are assigned to George Watts Elementary School.

Volunteers from Bull City Votes are also handing out sample ballots and nonpartisan voting guides to passersby.

Aristimuno spoke about the efforts of the North Carolina Youth Voting Rights Team, which is fighting youth voter disenfranchisement across the state.

“We've contacted all the people from [the] Karsh Alumni [and Visitors] Center who've cast a provisional ballot,” Aristimuno said. “… [We’re] giving them the steps to cure them and offering rides to go to the county board of elections and cure their provisional ballot to make sure their vote counts.”

A June Bass Connections report found that 61.7% of provisional ballots cast by Duke students in the March primary election were ultimately cast out, compared to 37% of provisional ballots rejected across Durham County. Read more about what provisional ballots are and how they can factor into youth voter disenfranchisement here.

-Ava Littman

Patterson, 3 p.m.

11/05/24 4:02 p.m.

Signs line the sidewalks to the W.I. Patterson Recreation Center guiding voters towards one of two polling locations for Duke students. There are no lines in sight, and only around 10 to 20 voters could be seen within the center. 

A few tables surround the polling location, one of which advertises “Duke Voting for Equality” and is manned by representatives offering donuts and chips to voters coming in and out of the center. Other tables include North Carolina Asian Americans Together, who also handed out water and food and encouraged those passing by to vote.

Annie, a graduate engineering student at Duke, shared her motivation to vote in North Carolina as a battleground state. 

“I was a Florida resident, and I felt like my vote didn't really … matter,” she said. “But here, being in North Carolina, I feel like my vote matters.”

She highlighted the “absolutely terrible” housing market and economic concerns as the main issues driving her to the polls this year.

“It causes a lot of anxiety and worry in our generation,” she said. “… You used to be able to buy a house and … pay for your kids to go to college. Now, you would be lucky if you can pay for one-fourth of your house.”

-Chloe Joy Chang

BC Plaza, 11:30 a.m.

11/05/24 3:48 p.m.

With less than 12 hours until the polls close in North Carolina, student organizations could be seen tabling on the Bryan Center Plaza with various resources and information on Election Day. 

Duke Votes, a nonpartisan civic engagement student group, is holding its last day of tabling for the semester. They are sharing resources on available shuttles to polling places, as well as nonpartisan voter information.

-Mekhi Patterson