THE "FULL SCOOP" ON ABSENTEE BALLOT PROCEDURES, ORANGE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA

Orange County Board Of Elections

North Carolina

Preface: You should know at the outset that ALL snail mail to the Orange County Board Of Elections MUST be sent to the Board's PO Box and NOT to the Board's street address. The PO Box, which is mentioned several times below, is PO BOX #220, Hillsborough, NC 27278.

I just spoke with the Orange County Board of Elections, located at 208 South Cameron Street in Hillsborough, NC.

During that conversation I took detailed written notes and am quite confident I am representing Absentee Ballot voting procedures accurately.

Any mistakes in this document are mine alone, and if you want to verify the following information, you can contact the Orange County Board of Elections directly via their webpage: https://www.orangecountync.gov/1082/Board-of-Elections Or, you can phone the Orange County Board of Election at 919-245-2350 

If -- and only if -- you are a registered voter, you can obtain an Absentee Ballot Request Form for the 2020 election right on the Board of Election webpage, or you can phone the Board of Elections at 919-245-2350 and they will snail mail you an Absentee Ballot Request Form.

Please keep in mind that this first step (of a two-step process) is only for the purpose of receiving a Request Form for an Absentee Ballot, and does NOT result in receiving an actual Absentee Ballot.

All snail mail correspondence with Orange County Board of Election must take place through their Post Office Box #220, Hillsborough, NC 27278, NOT the Board's street address.

Once you have downloaded your application/request form for an Absentee Ballot (or request such an application form over the phone directly from the Board of Election at 919-245-2350 - you can submit your completed application form right on the Board of Election webpage, or, you can snail mail your request form for an Absentee Ballot to Orange County Board Of Elections, Post Office Box #220, Hillsborough, NC 27278.

DO NOT conduct any snail mail correspondence with the Board of Elections' street address, but only through the Board's PO Box #220.

In a week or so, when you receive your actual Absentee Ballot, you can then snail mail your completed Absentee Ballot to the Board of Elections, PO Box #220, Hillsborough, NC 27278 - NOT to their S. Cameron street address.

Before returning your completed Absentee Ballot, you MUST have someone witness your signature. 

There is a designated "line item" for the "witness." 

He (or she) is NOT to read your completed ballot, but just witness your signature by signing their own signature on the designated line.

Without a witness' signature, your ballot is invalied and WILL NOT BE COUNTED.

You can also hand deliver your completed Absentee Ballot to a lock box inside the Orange Count Board of Election office at 208 South Cameron Street in Hillsborough. 

Hand-delivered Absentee Ballots are accepted at 208 South Cameron Street through Election Day, November 3rd, until 5 p.m. which is closing time.

Alternatively, you can hand deliver your Absentee Ballot to any of six "Early Voting" sites in Orange County from October 15th through October 30th. 

Here is the PDF document with the names and locations of all "Early Voting" sites and their dates and hours of operation: https://www.orangecountync.gov/DocumentCenter/View/12022/Early-Voting-November-3-2020-Presidential-Election?bidId= 

October 27th is the last day to request an Absentee Ballot Application Form, although it seems dangerous to me to delay your application that long.

Although nothing is certain in life, I would venture that submitting your application for an Absentee Ballot should take place no later than October 15th. It could take a week (or more) for the Orange County Board Of Elections to snail mail your Absentee Ballot to you, and you might need a few days to fill it out and return it.

Snail mail delivery of Absentee Ballots to citizens who have applied for them begins this Friday, September 4th.

NOTE WELL: It is not necessary to use your Absentee Ballot even after you have received one. You may still decide to go to your polling place on Election Day (November 3rd) and vote inside a physical voting booth rather than submit your Absentee Ballot. Here is the appropriate guidance from the Orange County Board Of Elections' webpage: "Voters who receive a mailed absentee ballot may still vote in person on Election Day or during early voting as long as the mailed absentee ballot was not returned."   

In addition to snail-mailing your ballot to the Orange County Board of Election's PO Box #220 in Hillsborough,  you can also hand deliver your Absentee Ballot to your November 3rd polling place or any of the polling sites listed at https://www.orangecountync.gov/DocumentCenter/View/12022/Early-Voting-November-3-2020-Presidential-Election?bidId= 

Your last opportunity to submit your Absentee Ballot is on Election Day itself, and if you choose to snail mail your Absentee Ballot to the Board Of Election's PO Box, MAKE SURE that your Absentee Ballot is postmarked by 5:00 p.m., November 3rd.

I believe some post office branches close earlier than others so do your research to be sure of closing times.

One final note...

Even if your Absentee Ballot is postmarked by 5 p.m. on Election Day, November 3rd, your ballot must still be delivered to Orange County Board Of Elections Post Office Box by November 6th. Otherwise your ballot will not count.  

Once again, to make sure your Absentee Ballot is counted, it is best to mail your ballot to Orange County Board Of Elections, PO Box #220 several business days before the specified mailing deadline of 5:00 p.m. November 3rd.