By james art Good morning and welcome to Under the dome newsletter. i am Emily Vespa.
Democratic Party Vice Presidential Candidate Tim Waltz is in North Carolina today for two campaign events.
He will be the first to join Bill Clinton in Durham to begin the former president’s four-day vice presidential bus tour of eastern North Carolina Kamala Harrisaiming to reach rural voters. Later, Walz will head to Winston-Salem for a rally. This is the Minnesota governor’s third visit to the Tar Heel state since he became Harris’ running mate.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will also be in Durham today as part of a tour to promote his latest book.
EARLY VOTING BEGINS TODAY. WHAT TO KNOW
Early voting in North Carolina begins today and runs through Saturday, November 2 at 3 p.m. Here’s what you need to know from our news services team.
During early voting, you can visit any early voting site in your county. To find a site near you and its hours of operation, visit vt.ncsbe.gov/EVSite.
If you are a registered voter, see who will be on your ballot using the State Election Commission’s voter search tool. Visit vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup, enter your information, and then click on “Your Sample Ballot.”
Voters are required to show photo IDsuch as a driver’s license or passport to vote. You can still vote without ID, but you will need to fill out an ID exemption form.
CITIZEN-ONLY VOTING MEASURE WILL NOT BLOCK SOME CITIZENS FROM VOTING
Misinformation about a citizens-only voting amendment on the North Carolina ballot this election erupted into a battle of semantics.
Some opponents of the amendment said it would disenfranchise naturalized citizens, which was not true. US citizens, regardless of how they obtained citizenship, have the right to vote. The proposed constitutional amendment will not change that.
Instead, the ballot measure would change the state constitution’s language, which currently states that “any” person born in the U.S. or naturalized can vote, to say that “only” a U.S. citizen can vote. Advocates say it’s an attempt to make clear that noncitizens can’t vote, which is already illegal and extremely rare in state and federal elections.
Still, opponents of the amendment fear the ballot measure, which passed with bipartisan support in the state Legislature, could hinder voter turnout for naturalized citizens, who make up 44 percent of all immigrants in North Carolina, according to data from US Census Bureau.
“Creating this vague language on top of this misinformation about non-citizens voting in elections can really confuse new Americans who are just learning how to participate in the electoral process,” said Jimmy Patel-Nguyendirector of communications for North Carolina Asian Americans Together. “The concern is that this could really have a chilling effect on turnout in this election and beyond.”
Andy Jacksondirector of the conservative Civitas Center for Public Integrity, said the current language does not mention a different group of eligible voters: natural-born citizens who were born abroad.
“There’s a bright line between a citizen and a non-citizen,” Jackson said of the proposed amendment. “It explicitly says that only citizens can vote. It doesn’t matter how you become a citizen, it only matters that you are a citizen.”
WHAT ELSE WE’RE WORKING ON
WHAT ELSE ARE WE READING
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Republican candidate for vice president JD Vance stopped in Wilmington on Wednesday for a campaign rally. The Wilmington StarNews has the details.
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Before the visit, Vance, a member of the Wilmington City Council Salette Andrews urged voters to “turn the page on Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans,” saying a second Trump term would be “disastrous,” the Wilmington StarNews reported.
WATCH THE CAMPAIGN
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Lieut.-Governor Mark Robinson will join Hal WeathermanRepublican candidate for lieutenant governor, for a campaign event in western North Carolina on Friday.
VOTER’S GUIDE
In the latest survey cards for candidates from our 2024 NC Voter Guidesee what candidates for US House District 9 should talk about the problems and learn more about their biographies.
Two candidates answered our questions:
a democrat Nigel Bristow
Unaffiliated candidate Shelain Etchison
Today’s newsletter was from Emily Vespa. Check your inbox tomorrow for more #ncpol.
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