With illegal immigration being a problem for decades and the state of North Carolina being one of the states that sees a lot of illegal immigrants come to work, the North Carolina State Board of Elections – and county elections offices across the state such as the Guilford County Board of Elections – certainly don’t want to see any cheating in the most important presidential election in the history of the country.

So, exactly what will North Carolina elections officials do to ensure that only US citizens vote?

In this state, the NC Board of Elections notes “a series of laws and processes work together to try to ensure that only qualified U.S. citizens cast ballots in elections.”

Here are some of the safety measures election workers will take:

  • The first question on the NC voter registration application, as required by state and federal law, includes the following language: “Are you a citizen of the United States of America? If you checked ‘No’ in response to this citizenship question, do not submit this form. You are not qualified to vote.”

So, right off the bat, they let you know you better not vote if you aren’t an American citizen.

Everyone registering to vote must sign the application, under penalty of perjury, stating that they’re a US citizen. The language over the signature box states clearly: “Fraudulently or falsely completing this form is a Class I felony under Chapter 163 of the NC General Statutes.”

Specifically, under North Carolina General Statutes it’s a felony to register to vote or to vote if you aren’t a citizen of the United States.

Section 1 of the instructions that come with the North Carolina Voter Registration Application include language that specifies the applicant “must be a citizen of the United States.”

The voter registration application and the instructions are available in Spanish as well as in English.

Also, every voter, whether they vote in person or they mail in an absentee ballot, has to sign an application to vote on which they certify that they are a US citizen. Fraudulently or falsely completing that application is a Class I felony.

All polling sites in the state must have posters displayed in English and Spanish that include the language: “By signing your voter form today, you certify: You are a US citizen. Non-citizens, including lawful permanent residents (‘green card’ holders), are not eligible to vote.”

Also, any registered voter of a county may challenge the right of any person to register in the same county if that person has a valid basis to believe the registrant is not a US citizen.

The State Board of Elections website – ncsbe.gov – can be translated into 15 languages other than English using the “Select Language” button on the site, and it contains information about voting eligibility in several places.

The state board also notes that NC Voter Registration Application registrants must provide their date of birth and their driver’s license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number. These numbers are checked against data from the Division of Motor Vehicles and/or the Social Security Administration.

It adds, “There is no comprehensive, accurate, or up-to-date database of US citizens that election administrators could use for verification purposes. However, if election officials learn that a non-U.S. citizen registers and/or votes in an election, the Investigations Division of the State Board of Elections will conduct an investigation. If warranted by the evidence, the State Board will forward that investigation to prosecutors for review and possible prosecution at the prosecutor’s discretion.”

State election officials say there are “very few, if any, cases of noncitizen registration or voting referred for prosecution statewide each year,” and they add that that demonstrates how infrequent it is for noncitizens to register or vote.

As for showing your ID when you vote, yes, you’re supposed to; however, if you have a good excuse why you don’t have an ID with you, you can go ahead and vote anyway.

You can be excluded from the requirement if you have a “reasonable impediment” to showing a photo ID. This means that something is preventing you from showing identification.

In that case, here are some acceptable excuses provided on the form you’ll have to fill out before you cast your vote:

  • Lack of transportation
  • Disability or illness
  • Lack of birth certificate or other documents needed to obtain ID
  • Work or school schedule
  • Family responsibilities
  • Photo ID is lost, stolen, or misplaced
  • Applied for a photo ID but have not received it
  • The voter has a religious objection to being photographed
  • The voter was a victim of a natural disaster within 100 days before Election Day that resulted in a disaster declaration by the President of the United States or the Governor of North Carolina.
  • Any other reasonable impediment.

If elections officials don’t see an ID, you’ll only be allowed to cast a “provisional vote,” which will later be scrutinized by the county board of elections. The board will determine whether or not your vote will count.

You also have about a week after the vote in which you can take your ID down to your county’s Board of Elections office and show it to elections staff to be sure your vote gets counted.

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