Are You Registered to Vote? What You Need to Know.

Over 200,000 Buncombe County residents are already registered to vote in the upcoming general election on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Will your voice be heard? This election will feature candidates at the local, state, and federal levels; registering to vote will make sure you help decide who will create policies that affect your day-to-day life. The deadline to register for the November election is Oct. 9, however you can also take advantage of same-day registration during early voting Oct.15-Oct. 31.

First things first: Do you know if you’re registered to vote? You can find out through North Carolina’s Board of Elections voter search tool.

If you aren’t registered, to be eligible to vote you must:

• Be a U.S. citizen.
• Be at least 18 years old, or turn 18 by the time of the general election.
• Be a resident of North Carolina, Buncombe County, and your precinct for at least 30 days prior to the election.
• Rescind any previous registration in another county or state.
• Not currently serving a sentence for a felony conviction, including probation or parole. If you have previously completed a sentence for a felony conviction you will need to have your citizen rights restored in order to register to vote. You can find information about that process here.

If you meet the above qualifications, download our online form to register and mail it to Buncombe County Election Services P.O. Box 7468, Asheville, NC 28802 or stop by and register in person at our office, 77 McDowell St, Asheville NC 28801.

Remember to provide either your North Carolina driver’s license/ID number OR the last four digits of your SSN, otherwise when you vote for the first time you will need to provide one of the following ID’s:

• North Carolina driver’s license.
• Government issued photo ID.
• Current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document showing your name.
• Current college or university photo ID along with proof of campus residency.

Register to vote electronically at the NCDMV

The State Board of Elections and N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles (NCDMV) have launched a service to allow NCDMV customers to apply to register to vote or update existing voter registration information online.

This is a standalone service that does not require the user to complete a NCDMV transaction, such as a license renewal or duplicate, at the same time.

Existing NCDMV customers with a North Carolina driver’s license or NCDMV-issued ID may apply to register to vote or update voter address or political party information through the NCDMV Voter Registration web page. The application currently does not allow voters to change their name. Read more here.

For more information about registering to vote visit the Buncombe County Election Services website or call (828) 250-4200.