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MapNorth Carolina Voters Vote Nov. 3 as State Board of Elections Sets Polling, ID Rules
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Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Voters must vote at their assigned polling place.
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Election Day logistics
North Carolina voters head to assigned polling places on Tuesday, Nov. 3, as more than 2,600 polling places open from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., and voters in line at 7:30 p.m. can still cast a ballot.
The North Carolina State Board of Elections tells voters to use the Voter Search tool to find their polling place and to check the "Your Sample Ballot" section after locating their voter record.
The State Board of Elections says photo ID is required at the polling place when voters check in to vote, and it adds that most voters will show their driver's license while many other photo IDs are acceptable.
The State Board of Elections warns that North Carolina law prohibits photographing or taking videos of voted ballots, while it says voters may use electronic devices in the voting booth to access candidate information.
The State Board of Elections also says laws forbid intimidation or interference with voters, and it adds that penalties for violations include prison time, fines, or both.
What is on the ballot
More than 230 million eligible voters can head to the polls on Tuesday to decide who will represent them in Congress, with all 435 House of Representatives seats and 35 of the Senate’s 100 seats being contested. The midterms decide control of Congress on Tuesday, and Donald Trump is facing potentially pivotal elections with two years of his presidency remaining. Voters overwhelmingly say they are most concerned about the cost of living, with food and fuel prices rising in part due to the president's aggressive tariffs and an unpopular war with Iran.
Senate Democrats need a net gain of four seats to reach a majority, while House Democrats need three seats for a majority. Voters in 36 states will also elect governors, and Republicans currently hold both chambers.
When results may arrive
The first results could start arriving on Tuesday as polls begin to close, and results will continue to come in throughout Tuesday evening and some on Wednesday. Closely contested races could take hours, or even days, to call, and election officials release vote counts as ballots are processed while news organisations analyse results to determine when a race can be called. Voting hours are determined and set by each state, and Ohio and North Carolina will see voting start at 6:30am (11:30 GMT).
Alaska is the last to close, at around 1am Eastern Time (06:00 GMT) on Wednesday, and earlier closures at 6pm (23:00 GMT) in Indiana and Kentucky occur. The Supreme Court rejected the Trump administration’s request that California separate out up to 20,000 mail-in ballots that officials allege could be submitted by noncitizens, on the eve of Election Day.