Sep 3, 2020 - Politics & Policy

N.C. election board refutes Trump, reminds public voting twice is illegal

Laurin-Whitney Gottbrath

Voting machines are shown. — Photo: Sean Rayford/Getty Images

North Carolina's election board on Thursday was compelled to remind residents that voting twice is a felony, after President Trump suggested that voters should vote once by mail and again in person on Election Day.

What they're saying: "Attempting to vote twice in an election or soliciting someone to do so also is a violation of North Carolina law," Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, said in a statement.

“There are numerous checks in place in North Carolina that prevent people from double voting. Electronic pollbooks with information about who has already voted are used at every early voting site,” Bell said.
“If a voter tries to check in who has already voted, they will be prevented from voting a regular ballot."

Driving the news: Trump made the suggestion during a visit to the key battleground state of North Carolina on Wednesday, saying voters should cast their ballots twice to test the mail-in system. His comments encouraging people to violate the law and vote twice were shocking given that he's railed against mail-in voting with baseless claims that increased mail-in ballots will lead to widespread voter fraud.

The big picture: Many states have expanded early and mail-in voting due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Go deeper: When and how to vote in all 50 states

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N.C. election board refutes Trump, reminds public voting twice is illegal

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