ELECTION 2020: How to make sure your vote was counted in North Carolina

RALEIGH — Did you vote in this election and wonder what the status of your ballot is?

The North Carolina State Board of Elections has a Voter Search tool so people can check their voter history.

State board officials are reminding voters it could take a few weeks for their voter history to update and reflect their recent vote.

>> CLICK HERE to check your voter history

“If you voted in person and inserted your ballot into a tabulator, your selections were immediately recorded on a memory card, and your votes were reported on election night as part of the unofficial results,” said Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the State Board of Elections. “We respectfully ask that voters trust their bipartisan boards of elections across North Carolina. We are here to make sure your votes count, and they will.”

There have been a lot of voters who have asked state and county election officials if their ballot counted in the 2020 general election.

[SPECIAL SECTION: VOTE 2020]

“In almost every single case, the answer will be ‘yes,’” officials said in a news release.

For those who voted on Election Day, officials said it will take time for their voter history to update because county board of election officials have to first complete the post-election process.

If you voted in person on Election Day

Your selections were recorded on a media card in the tabulator when you inserted your ballot into a tabulator, election officials said.

Those results were counted and reported publicly on election night. Your ballot status will show up in the voter history section when your county completes the post-election process of assigning voter history to your record.

“This may take a couple of weeks or longer after the election,” officials stressed.

If you voted in person during the one-stop early voting period from Oct. 15-31

Early in-person voting numbers shattered records in North Carolina.

[Record-setting early-voting period ends in North Carolina]

Voters can see that their votes were counted in the “Your Absentee Ballot” section in the N.C. State Board of Elections' “Voter Search.”

“Under North Carolina law, all early votes – by-mail or in-person – are considered absentee votes,” election officials said in the news release. "If you voted during the early voting period, your ‘Absentee Status’ will show ‘VALID RETURN,’ the ‘Return Method’ will be ‘IN PERSON’ and your ‘Return Status’ will be ‘ACCEPTED.’

Your ballot status will also be in “Voter History” after the post-election process, which again, could take a couple of weeks or longer, officials said.

If you voted absentee by mail

You can find that your vote counted in the “Your Absentee Ballot” section after it was received by your county board of elections.

If you cast a provisional ballot

You can check the status of your ballot 10 days after the election using the “Provisional Search” tool.

CLICK HERE for the full statement from NCSBE.

Record number of voters casting ballots early across our area

Cox Media Group