95% of early voting sites in western NC will open as planned

What they're saying: "We lost just a few [early voting sites] despite the extensive damage, loss of power, water, internet and phone service and the washing out of roads throughout the region," Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the State Board of Elections, said on a press call Tuesday.

• "The people of Western North Carolina will vote," she added.

Zoom in: Four of 14 planned sites in Buncombe County won't open for early voting because of either damage or inaccessibility, and there were no suitable alternative locations.

• McDowell County also could not open one of its two sites in Old Fort.
• But Avery County was able to add an extra site to increase accessibility, Brinson Bell said.

What's next: The majority of Election Day precincts are expected to open, Brinson Bell said. Boards are having emergency meetings now to get plans in order.

• "It might require a generator. It might require porta-potty, but we are getting those sites open," she said.