ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — North Carolina was set to be the first state to send ballots to voters for the Nov. 5 general election, but a last-minute ruling by the state’s Court of Appeals threw a wrench in those plans.

On Friday, Sept. 6, the North Carolina Court of Appeals ordered the state to remove former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s name from the ballot and print new ones. Kennedy Jr. dropped out of the presidential race in late August and endorsed former President Donald Trump, but his name remained on North Carolina’s ballot under the “We the People Party.” Kennedy requested his name be removed and that new ballots be printed before being sent to voters who requested them. The North Carolina State Board of Elections voted to reject RFK’s request, which he challenged in court. On Thursday, Sept. 5, a Wake County Superior Court denied RFK’s request once again. However, the court also issued a pause on sending out absentee ballots until noon Friday to allow an opportunity for appeal, which later proved to be successful for RFK Jr. The state Board of Elections filed an appeal with the state Supreme Court Friday afternoon.

According to The Associated Press, North Carolina is one of several battleground states where RFK Jr. has requested his named be removed from the ballots.

By the numbers

Staff with the state Board of Elections have been scrambling ever since Friday’s ruling. According to a release from the state, staff have been working through the weekend to begin the process of coding new ballots without Kennedy’s name and providing proofs of the new ballots to county boards of elections for review.

There are 2,348 different ballot styles statewide for the 2024 general election. More than 2.9 million ballots had already been printed before the order by the Court of Appeals, the state’s release said.

“The State Board asked the Supreme Court for an expedited decision so counties will not have to spend additional money preparing and printing new ballots if the State Board is successful in its appeal,” the release added. “In North Carolina, county boards of elections are responsible for ballot-related costs.”

State Elections Director Karen Brinson Bell asked county election offices to work hard to ensure ballots are ready to go out to absentee voters no later than Sept. 21, the federal deadline to send absentee ballots in a presidential election.

“Voting system and ballot printing vendors have indicated that it may take an additional 12-13 days to carry out the reprinting of ballots,” the state’s release said. “If it’s determined these tasks cannot be completed by September 21, the State may request a waiver to the federal deadline.”

As of Friday afternoon, more than 136,300 voters had requested absentee ballots statewide, including about 12,700 military and overseas voters.

What absentee voters need to know

The following is information from the State Board of Elections:

In North Carolina, any eligible voter can request and vote an absentee ballot by mail. For more information on requesting, completing, and returning an absentee ballot, go to Vote By Mail. For additional information, see Detailed Instructions to Vote By Mail.

Voters who have already requested a ballot for the 2024 general election do not need to request a new one. If a voter needs their ballot to be delivered to a different address since they will receive their ballot later than expected, then a voter should complete a new request form with the updated address information. County boards of elections will process the new request once received and cancel the previous request and ballot.

The absentee ballot request deadline is 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 29. Election officials urge voters who wish to vote by mail to request their ballot as early as possible to ensure there is time to receive it and then send it back to their county board of elections so that it is received no later than 7:30 p.m. on Election Day – Nov. 5.

Note: State law previously provided for a grace period if a ballot was postmarked on or before Election Day and received up to three days after the election. That is no longer the case. The ballot must be at the county board office, not in the mail, by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day.

Sample ballots

Because of the possible change to ballots, sample ballots were removed from the State Board’s Voter Search tool. New sample ballots will be posted as soon as they are available.

2024 general election dates and deadlines

Here are key dates and deadlines for the 2024 general election in North Carolina:

  • Oct. 11: Voter registration deadline (5 p.m.).*
  • Oct. 17: In-person early voting begins; same-day registration available.
  • Oct. 29: Absentee ballot request deadline (5 p.m.).*
  • Nov. 2: In-person early voting ends (3 p.m.).
  • Nov. 5: General Election Day.
  • Nov. 5: Absentee ballot return deadline (7:30 p.m.).*

*Voter registration and absentee voting deadlines are different for military and overseas citizen voters.

CLICK HERE to view more voting information on the North Carolina State Board of Elections’ website.