State Board cuts Sunday voting and campus polling sites

Voters and student advocates gathered in Raleigh on Jan. 13 after the State Board of Elections voted to eliminate some Sunday early-voting hours and scale back the number of campus polling locations for the March 2026 primary. The move, adopted after Republicans assumed control of state election administration in 2025, prompted protests from students and voting-rights groups who said the changes would make voting harder for young people and communities of color.

The State Board's action alters plans county election boards had been preparing for the March primary. Wake County elections officials said they must now revise early voting schedules and site assignments to comply with the statewide directive and the narrower window for Sunday voting. Officials framed their response as operational, noting the need to reallocate poll workers, machines and sites under new constraints while still meeting statutory obligations for accessible voting.

Students and activists argued Sunday hours and campus polling locations are not administrative conveniences but essential access points. Organizers emphasized that Sunday voting often aligns with faith-based and community mobilization efforts and that campus sites are a primary route for first-time voters and those who lack reliable transportation. Protesters said reductions are likely to depress turnout among demographic groups that rely disproportionately on those options.

The State Board meeting itself became a focal point for those tensions. Supporters of the change cited uniformity and administrative control at the state level, while opponents warned of practical consequences in diverse, fast-growing counties such as Wake. County officials described legal limits on how much they can offset state directives at the local level, and said they would work within the new framework to preserve as much accessibility as possible.

For Wake County, the practical effect will be a reconfigured early voting plan heading into the March primary. That process will force local election administrators to balance staffing, machine deployment and site geography against a compressed schedule. Voting advocates warn that fewer Sunday hours and fewer campus locations could disproportionately affect Black voters and younger cohorts whose turnout patterns have relied on those options in recent election cycles.

Beyond March, the changes are being watched as a potential signal of broader shifts in state election policy leading into the November general election. For Wake residents, the immediate takeaway is procedural: check Wake County Board of Elections updates for revised early voting hours and locations, monitor outreach from campus and community groups, and plan to vote earlier in the window if possible. Local election officials say they will publish adjusted plans and staffing details as they finalize logistics under the State Board's directives.