Early voting starts Oct. 15 and continues through Oct. 31 in Orange County with a key difference this year due to the coronavirus pandemic: The Orange County Board of Elections Office will not serve as an early voting site.
Orange Works at Hillsborough Commons, 113 Mayo St., will serve as an alternate early voting site in Hillsborough this year. The site is located near the Orange County Department of Social Services.
Early voting
Orange County residents may choose to vote at any one of six early voting sites offered in the county.
- In Hillsborough ― Orange Works at Hillsborough Commons, 113 Mayo St.
- In Carrboro ― Carrboro Town Hall, 301 W. Main St.
- In Chapel Hill ―
- Chapel of the Cross, 304 E. Franklin St.
- Seymour Senior Center, 2551 Homestead Road
- University Mall, 201 S. Estes Drive
- In Efland ― Efland Ruritan Club, 3009 Forrest Ave.
All early voting locations will be open the same dates and hours.
- Weekdays ― 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
- Saturdays ― 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Sundays ― noon to 5 p.m.
Same-day voter registration
Same-day voter registration is available during the early voting period at all early voting sites.
If you plan to complete same-day registration, you must bring a valid form of government identification and must vote during the early voting period rather than on Election Day. The valid form of identification does not need to be a photo ID, but it must show residence in Orange County.
You can check whether you are registered to vote through the North Carolina Board of Elections website.
Absentee voting
Absentee ballots may be returned to the Orange County Board of Elections at an early voting site during early voting hours. Voters returning ballots at early voting sites must wait in line with other voters and return the ballots indoors.
The ballots also can be hand-delivered weekdays to the Board of Elections office, 208 S. Cameron St. in Hillsborough, through 5 p.m. Election Day, Nov. 3. On weather-permitting days, ballots will be accepted outside the office at an outdoor tent.
Absentee ballots returned via mail must be postmarked by Nov. 3 and received by Nov. 6 to be considered timely. Requests for absentee ballots must be received by 5 p.m. Oct. 27.
For additional information on absentee voting, see the news release Orange County Ensuring Safe Voting during Pandemic or the Orange County Absentee Voting By Mail webpage.
Safety measures
Each voting location will feature enhanced cleaning protocols, social distancing, single-use pens and single-use cotton swabs for voters. Due to federal voting laws, voters will be asked but not required to wear masks. Any voter who doesn’t have a mask will be offered one. See the Orange County Board of Elections’ Safe Voting page or the Voting Safely graphic below for information on safety measures being taken in this election cycle due to the pandemic.
See a video about the voting process in Orange County for the upcoming presidential election. The video features the six early voting sites and a demonstration of the safety protocols that will be in place. The video is available in English, Spanish and Chinese and can be found on the Orange County Public Library’s YouTube channel.
