Commission rules state‑only birthplace entries sufficient during random registration review

The Davidson County Election Commission completed a statutorily required random review of voter registrations and addressed questions about how registrants record their place of birth.

The chair proposed that entries listing only a birth state in the place‑of‑birth field satisfy the statute's requirement and recommended submitting a report to the coordinator of elections indicating no deficiencies while flagging the interpretation for confirmation. "It's the rule of the chair that by putting the state where you were born satisfies this provision... I would therefore suggest that we submit the report to the coordinator's office indicating that we found no deficiencies," the chair said.

Commissioner Byrd agreed with the chair's ruling but cautioned that birthplace conventions vary across places and that the statutory text should be consulted; Byrd noted city/county norms and the coordinator's role in preparing forms. Commissioner Dooley pressed for consistency because some registration forms specify city and state. The chair confirmed the process: staff will report no deficiencies but will note the question and ask the coordinator's office to confirm the interpretation.

The commission resumed its meeting after the review and proceeded with other agenda items.