In North Carolina, observers must be appointed by the chair of the political party they will observe for. N.C. Gen. Stat. §163-45.1(b). Political parties achieve recognition in North Carolina in a number of ways, including by previous electoral support as well as by applying to the State Board of Elections. N.C. Gen. Stat. §163-45.1(b). Each party is allowed to appoint a certain number of observers to be registered throughout the state. N.C. Gen. Stat. §163-45.1(b). The County Board of Elections or Chief Judge may challenge the appointment of an observer only for “good cause, which shall include evidence that the observer could impact the conduct of the election.” N.C. Gen. Stat. §163-45.1(f). Only those designated as official observers by a party are permitted to observe the polls. “Fact Sheet.” The only exception to this rule is in the case of an unaffiliated candidate, who may appoint observers at polling sites where they are on the ballot. N.C. Gen. Stat. §163-45.1(b)(4).
Parties must notify Chief Judges at polling sites who the designated observers are at least five days before when they are assigned to observe. “Fact Sheet.”
North Carolina allows observers in most parts of the voting process, including during voting, during tabulation at the closing of polls, and at the canvass.
Observers may be required by the State Board of Elections to wear an identification badge while at the polls. N.C. Gen. Stat. §163-45.1(d). Each party is allowed a maximum of three observers at any polling site at any given time and observers appointed to observe a specific polling site must observe for at least four hours before they are permitted to be relieved. N.C. Gen. Stat. §163-45.1(e).
While inside the polling place, observers have wide leeway to move about the site and listen to conversations between voters and election administrators. N.C. Gen. Stat. §163-45.1(g). The limits on this are when the observer’s position would violate the confidentiality of the voter or otherwise violate an election law. “Tips for Monitoring.” Because of this limitation, there might be instances where portions of a polling site are entirely barred to observers because of the setup of the polling site. “Tips for Monitoring.”
Observers are allowed to view the closing of polls and are allowed to take photographs of the closing procedure, as long as they do not interfere with the closing of the polls. N.C. Gen. Stat. §163-45.1(i).
There is not much detail in the code about observers witnessing the canvass. Broadly, however, the statute is clear: “Any member of the public wishing to witness the vote count at any level shall be allowed to do so.” N.C. Gen. Stat. § 163-182.2(3). This means that the requirement of party designation and approval that exists for observing the polls does not exist for observing the canvass. Additionally, the State Board of Elections states that any “voter of the county or other member of the public must be permitted to attend the meeting and be allowed to observe the counting process,” (referring to the canvass meeting) provided that they do not interfere with the election officials carrying out their tasks. *Numbered Memo 2023-04, 10/12/2023* at 17. Members of the public and the media may take photographs and film as long as they do not violate the secrecy of the ballots being canvassed. *Numbered Memo 2023-04, 10/12/2023* at 17.
Similar to access given to the public during canvass meetings, County Board of Elections meetings to determine the status of provisional ballots “must be open to the public.” *Numbered Memo 2023-04, 10/12/2023* at 3. As provisional ballot determination tends to happen during the course of other County Board of Elections meeting business, there does not appear to be any additional regulation or special access for public observation. See, e.g., “Wake County March 14 Agenda.” Additionally, absentee ballot meetings, which are meetings held by the County Board of Elections, must be open to the public. *Numbered Memo 2020-25, 09/22/2020* at 2.