Early voting began Thursday in North Carolina, a battleground state that is recovering from Hurricane Helene and will play a key role in deciding who enters the White House.

All 100 counties in North Carolina will have 17 days of in-person, early voting before Election Day.

There will be 76 voting sites in the western North Carolina counties listed in the federal disaster declaration around Helene, which wiped away mountain towns and devastated downtown Asheville.

Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the <a href="/topics/north-carolina-state-board-of-elections/">North Carolina State Board of Elections</a>, credited county elections and emergency personnel for getting the election infrastructure up and running.

“Before the storm, 80 sites were planned, so we just lost a few, despite the extensive damage, loss of power, water, internet and phone service and the washing out of roads throughout the region,” Ms. Brinson Bell said in a press conference about early voting.

“To have almost all early voting sites open after such a devastating storm is an effort all North Carolinians should be proud of,” she said. “We are especially grateful to residents of western North Carolina who suffered greatly from the storm but who will show up to work at early voting sites this week. The people of western North Carolina will vote.”

North Carolina is a perpetual purple state and a key prize in presidential elections.

Democrats haven’t won it in a presidential cycle since Barack Obama took it in 2008.

Former President Donald Trump, who is the Republican nominee, won the state in 2016 and 2020. Vice President Kamala Harris would give her Democratic bid a massive boost if she were to win North Carolina’s 16 electoral votes.

Ms. Bell said voters should be prepared to show photo identification when they check in to vote. Voters without ID must fill out an exemption explaining why they could not show ID and cast provisional ballots.

The state also made allowances for the 25 western counties impacted by Helene. Voters can drop off absentee ballots at any voting site in the state.

For instance, a Buncombe County resident staying temporarily in the Charlotte area could drop off a ballot at an early voting site in Mecklenburg County, according to the <a href="/topics/north-carolina-state-board-of-elections/">elections board</a>.

• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at <a href="mailto:thowell@washingtontimes.com">thowell@washingtontimes.com</a>.

Early voting began Thursday in North Carolina, a battleground state that is recovering from Hurricane Helene and will play a key role in deciding who enters the White House.{ai:summary}Early voting has commenced in North Carolina, a critical battleground state recovering from Hurricane Helene. All 100 counties will have 17 days of in-person early voting, with 76 sites available in the western region affected by the storm.Election officials have praised the efforts to maintain voting infrastructure despite significant damage. Voters must present photo ID, and those without it can fill out an exemption form to cast provisional ballots. #politics