Buncombe County elections board approves 3,075 absentee ballots, disapproves 6; clarifies student-ID and temporary-license rules

The Buncombe County Board of Elections met on Tuesday to finish reviewing absentee ballots from the recent election and to reconcile precinct and county counts. Chair (Speaker 3) opened the session noting the board had 1,933 absentee ballots left to review and thanked staff and volunteers for streamlining the process.

Why it matters: After a two-day review, the board’s decisions determine which absentee ballots are counted and clarify how election administrators should treat nonstandard photo IDs ahead of certification. Director Duncan noted early voting remained high: “we are over 90,000 early voters now,” underscoring the scale of the office’s workload.

The board spent much of the meeting examining individual absentee envelopes for valid photo ID, witness and notary stamps, and signature consistency. Staff and board members flagged items with incomplete dates, tiny or unclear photographs, and signatures that initially looked similar across households. For several ballots, staff used the county’s voter-record system to verify signatures and recommended approval when the system corroborated the witness information.

A central question focused on student and institutional IDs that lack explicit expiration dates. Staff cited a State Board numbered memo (2023-03, FAQ 4) and said the guidance treats approved institutions’ student and employee IDs as acceptable so long as they are not expired. The board agreed to research specific cases and to confirm whether particular UNCA/UNC-format IDs in the batch were grandfathered under state approval.

The board also confronted a ballot that included only a photocopy of a paper receipt for a temporary license. Chair (Speaker 3) explained the State Board’s position during debate: “that is not an acceptable form of photo ID in North Carolina.” The board voted to disapprove that ballot; members noted the voter could cure the issue by presenting a valid ID in person.

A separate procedural issue emerged when staff discovered a ballot left inside an envelope that had not been scanned. Once the ballot was located and scanned, the precinct and county totals reconciled. As Chair (Speaker 3) put it in the meeting, "lo and behold, everything balanced," and staff proceeded to complete standard post-scan steps including polybagging and flash-drive handling.

Votes at a glance:
- Motion to approve a reviewed absentee ballot — carried 5–0.
- Motion to disapprove ballot where the CIV number did not match the envelope — carried 5–0.
- Motion to approve two ballots after staff research verified signatures — carried 5–0.
- Motion to disapprove a ballot that submitted only a photocopy of a temporary-license receipt — carried 5–0.
- Motion to approve 2,283 civilian ballots reviewed that day (part of the overall tally) — carried 5–0.

Final tally reported by staff: of 3,081 absentee ballots reviewed at this meeting the board approved 3,075 and disapproved 6. The count included 29 military ballots (all approved), 226 overseas civilian ballots (all approved), and a set of ballots with photo-ID exception forms (48 approved, 2 disapproved in that subgroup).

The board scheduled a follow-up meeting for Friday, November 1 at 3:30 p.m. to continue any remaining absentee work and adjourned for the night at 10:25 p.m.