Voters in western North Carolina cast ballots in tent after Helene damaged polling locations

BURKE COUNTY, N.C. — Thousands of voters across four counties in western North Carolina cast their ballots in a tent on Tuesday.

Election officials say FEMA provided the tents after seven polling locations were either damaged by Helene or being used in the recovery efforts.

And while some residents were unaware they could go into a tent to vote, officials said it was as nice as some of their other polling locations.

The tent, set up by FEMA, has generators, bathrooms, and portable lights outside.

Lisa Cutts was one of more than 850 people registered to vote at the Smyrna Baptist Church north of Morganton. But instead of voting at the fellowship hall at the church, she cast her ballot inside a tent out back.

“I think it is very unique. We have a lovely, beautiful tent. It’s huge,” Cutts said.

The fellowship hall at the church that had been used for voting in the precinct for decades flooded during Helene.

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Channel 9 spoke with neighbors about the devastation the area experienced, as well as the importance of voting today.

“A lot of damage. The bridge got washed out and houses flooded. We had a couple of pigs that went down the creek. That was the hardest thing to get over,” neighbor David Greene said.

“It’s really good to see that we’re getting people a place to vote because voting is so important,” neighbor Tyler Knight said.

The Board of Elections Director, Kenny Rhyne, said he believed they made the right decision.

“We didn’t want you to be confused by having to move to another precinct in an outlying place. So you can go to the same site and you can vote there,” said Rhyne.

Around 60% of residents in Burke County voted early, which is about 10% higher than those who voted in the previous presidential election.

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