County board of election offices across North Carolina held county canvass on Friday to officially finalize the general election results.
Several counties did not complete certification Friday and will continue the canvass process on Monday, according to the State board of Elections.
Chatham, Craven, Cumberland, Forsyth, Randolph and Yancey counties did not finish the county canvass on Friday. The results are also not yet completed in Watauga, Sampson, and Halifax counties, according to the state website.
It is not unusual for a small number of the bipartisan boards of elections to need more time, the board explained.
“The primary purpose of canvass is to ensure that the ballots of eligible voters are counted and those of ineligible individuals are not, that the county board followed all laws in the election and post-election processes, and that the certified results are accurate, no matter how long the process takes,” Executive Director of the State Board of Elections Karen Brinson Bell said in a press release.
Canvass is just one part of the election process after Election Day.
Additional audits also happen to ensure an accurate count across the state. BPR went to Henderson County earlier this week to watch the county’s audit.
“Everything was good. When we did the hand-to-eye recount, paper ballots matched the machine totals,” Summer Heatherly, Henderson County Board of Elections director, told BPR after the audit Tuesday.
By law, county canvass takes place 10 days after the general election. Each county certifies the election and then the state Board of Election office will certify the state’s results on November 26.
The election isn’t final until after canvass
On Nov. 6, Swain BOE Director Adam Byrnes shared that the second seat on the county commission board wouldn’t be decided until canvass.
"The Swain County Commissioners race is very close, and it is too soon to say who will win the second of the two seats. Bobby Jenkins currently leads Kenneth Leonard Parton by 16 votes. The results will be finalized and certified on Friday, November 15 at county canvass. No additional uploads of results will be made until the 15th," Byrnes said in an email.
On Friday, the Swain County canvass meeting started at 11 a.m. just like the other 99 across the state. BPR spoke with Byrnes after the meeting wrapped around 4 p.m.
He said there were a few issues with finalizing voter history but that all of the results were finalized.
“What we were doing was scanning in our last provisionals and absentees that hadn't been scanned in yet. There were some challenged voters due to deaths or felonies,” Byrnes said.
Byrnes said after canvass that the county commissioner candidates stayed in the same ranking with Republican Tanner Lawson in first place and unaffiliated candidate Bobby Jenkins in second place.
He said that a recount was unlikely.
“We had just under 70% turnout. A lot of interest in this election and really did not hit any big snags. I would say the process worked as intended. North Carolina, I think, is the gold standard in terms of election security and transparency and speed and reporting results on election night,” Byrnes said.
Could there be a recount?
Canvass triggers the possibility of a recount. State and local candidates have the option to call for a recount if the races are close enough.
The state Supreme Court seat is still too close to call. Associate Justice Allison Riggs, a registered Democrat, and Republican challenger Jefferson Griffin were essentially even on Friday after the majority of counties finished canvass, according to the Associated Press.
For statewide contests, there must be a difference between the candidates of 10,000 votes or fewer for a second-place candidate to demand a recount.
For local contests, there would have to be a difference of 1% or less of the total votes cast in the contest between the candidates after county canvass.
For statewide races, a candidate’s recount demand must be received by the State Board of Elections, in writing, no later than 12 p.m., Nov. 19. This includes General Assembly seats in which the district lies in more than one county.
For local contests, a recount must be requested in writing to the county board of elections by 5 p.m., Nov. 18.
Under state law, if results change after the recount request deadline and a candidate becomes eligible to demand a recount, they would have 48 hours to request one.
Canvass will resume on Monday at the following times in the following counties, according to the N.C. Board of Elections.
- Chatham County: The county board will reconvene at 1 p.m. Monday.
- Craven County: The county board will reconvene at 2 p.m. Monday.
- Cumberland County: The county board will reconvene at 4 p.m. Monday.
- Forsyth County: The county board will reconvene at 2 p.m. Monday.
- Randolph County: The county board will reconvene at a time to be determined.
- Yancey County: The county board will reconvene Monday at a time to be determined.
