ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) —
Early in-person voting is underway for Republican nominees for lieutenant governor and state auditor, but the Buncombe County Elections Services site was far from busy Wednesday morning.
“In fact, it’s been rather slow,” one poll worker said. “But we’re up to 69 voters since it began.”
In the lieutenant governor’s GOP runoff, Hal Weatherman and Jim O’Neill are vying to face Democrat Rachel Hunt, who easily won her primary.
The nomination for state auditor is between Jack Clark and Dave Boliek, the winner of whom will face Jessica Holmes (D) and Bob Drach (L).
“We’re only four days in, it probably should pick up next week,” another poll worker said.
In-person early voting at the election services building at 59 Woodfin Place in Asheville started April 25 and will continue 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday through May 10 and finish up 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, May 11.
Participation in the second primary is open to registered Republican voters, unaffiliated voters who voted Republican Party ballots in the first primary and unaffiliated voters who did not vote in the first primary.
The May 14 runoffs happened because the candidate with the most votes in the March 5 primaries did not receive more than 30 percent of the vote. All 80 precincts will be open from 6:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. May 14.
The deadline to request an absentee ballot is 5 p.m. May 7, and the return deadline is 7:30 p.m. May 14.
CLICK HERE to learn more about early voting, including the wait times.