What You Need to Know for Election Day Tuesday

Early voting at Duke’s Karsh Alumni and Visitors Center sets new record

American flag as background under "Election 2024" and check mark.

Election Day is Tuesday, November 5! The State Board of Elections has the following tips for voting on Election Day.

Polling places will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. The busiest times tend to be early in the morning and right before polls close.

  • Any voter in line at their assigned polling place at 7:30 p.m. will be able to vote.
  • Registered voters can find their polling place and sample ballot here: Voter Search.
  • You need a valid identification to vote. Learn more here.

To view sample ballots, registered voters must enter their information into the Voter Search and navigate to “Your Sample Ballot.” Voters can practice making selections with the accessible sample ballot: “Option 4” at the NC Absentee Ballot Portal.

Before heading to the polls, make sure you have an acceptable form of photo ID. This can include an NC Driver’s License, out of state license if you registered to vote in NC within 90 days of the election, U.S. Passport or Passport Card, an approved DukeCard (students only) and others.

You may only vote at your assigned polling place in your county on Election Day. Click here to find your polling place using your address.

Students living on East Campus will vote at George Watts Elementary School, 700 Watts St., and students living on West Campus will vote at Patterson Recreation Center, 2614 Crest St. Karsh Alumni and Visitors Center is not a polling place on Election Day.

East/West Campus Polling: Where are you registered West Campus: !I Patterson Community Center 2614 Crest St. East Campus: Watts Elementary School: 700 Watts St.

Voters who need assistance at the polls must request that assistance. Individuals who are unable to enter the polling place may vote curbside. Once inside the polling place, voters who experience difficulties should request help from an election worker.

To absentee vote

First, you must have requested an absentee ballot by October 29 at 5pm. You can track its status from printed to accepted by signing up online for status notifications through BallotTrax. Absentee ballots must be returned to your county board of elections by November 5 at 7:30pm.

Voters who vote by mail must include a photocopy of an acceptable ID inside the “photo ID envelope” that comes with their ballot. Or they may complete an ID Exception Form with the absentee ballot return envelope.

Duke University and Duke Health supervisors are encouraged to cancel non-essential meetings on Election Day and be flexible with scheduling to enable staff members who are unable to vote outside normal work hours to do so before, during, or after their assigned shifts. Duke’s voting policy can be found on the Duke Human Relations website.

Early Voting Numbers at Duke

Buoyed by a turnout of 1,055 voters for Democracy Day on Friday, Duke set a new record for early voting at Duke this year, with 13,956 people voting at the Karsh Alumni and Visitors Center. That’s up from 12,694 in the 2020 presidential elections.

The strong turnout at Duke also helped Durham County set a new high for early voting across the country. This year 145,794 voters cast early ballots, a 24% increase from the 117,842 who voted early in 2020.

Just a reminder that you can’t vote at Karsh on Election Day but must vote at your assigned polling site.