It is still possible to register to vote in the Nov. 2 municipal election and to request an absentee ballot from the Dare County Board of Elections (DCBOE).
You have until 5 p.m., on Friday, Oct. 8, to register to vote, and you may do so online through the DCBOE’s website.
For online registration, go to: Official NCDMV: Voter Registration Application (ncdot.gov)
If you do not register online, you may mail in your voter registration application to the Dare County Board of Elections, P.O. Box 1000, Manteo, NC 27959, or hand-deliver it to the DCBOE, which is located in the county government complex at 954 Marshall C. Collins Drive in Manteo.
For more details, see Early Voting | Election Information | Dare County, NC (darenc.com)
If you are already registered to vote, you will not need to present your voter registration card or any other identification in order to do so. You will only be required to state your name and residential address upon checking in at your polling place.
You may request an absentee ballot for the Nov. 2 election from the DCBOE up until 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 26. The DCBOE must receive your completed and signed absentee ballot request form by that time. (See methods of delivery above.)
To download a request for an absentee ballot and instructions, see North Carolina Absentee Ballot Request Form
The Board of Elections will start mailing absentee ballots on Oct. 3 to voters who have already requested them.
Two Southern Shores Town Council seats are up for election: the one for which I am running (against two opponents) and the Mayor’s seat, for which there are two candidates.
If you are supporting a candidate by displaying his or her yard sign, please be sure to post it in your private yard, clear of the public right of way. Town staff are enforcing the Town Code ordinance against temporary signs in the right of way by confiscating any they see there.
You may be interested in the following key election dates and events:
OCT. 13: The League of Women Voters (LWV) of Dare County will hold its Southern Shores Town Council Candidate Forum on Wednesday, Oct. 13 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
According to the LWV, each of the five candidates will be given two minutes for an opening statement, after which a question-and-answer period will occur. The questions will come from the audience and may be directed to as many candidates as the questioner requests. Candidates will have two minutes in which to respond to each question. At the conclusion of the Q&A, candidates will have two minutes for a closing statement.
Because of COVID-19, the LWV’s forum will be virtual for both the candidates and their audience and accessible via Zoom. You may register for it, and also submit a question to ask the candidates, at Webinar Registration – Zoom.
You also may submit a question for candidates by email to DareLWV@gmail.com. The League asks that you include your name and town of residence with your email.
The forum videotape will be available for viewing on You Tube after Oct. 13.
OCT. 14: Early voting for the election begins Thursday, Oct. 14 and runs through Saturday, Oct. 30. It will be conducted at the Kill Devil Hills Town Hall and the Dare County Administration Building in Manteo from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and on Sat., Oct. 30, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. There will be no early voting on the weekends of Oct. 16-17 and Oct. 23-24.
ELECTION DAY, TUESDAY, NOV. 2: The Southern Shores polling place for voting on Nov. 2 will be the Kitty Hawk Elementary School gymnasium, not the Kern Pitts Center. The polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
For links to all election information, see: Early Voting | Election Information | Dare County, NC (darenc.com)
Southern Shores always has a good voter turnout. I trust we will continue that trend in this off-election year. All residents should have a voice in how their town is governed.
Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 9/26/21
The Southern Shores Beacon 