In a 3-2 vote on May 19, 2026, Republican members of the Chatham County Board of Elections voted to eliminate Sunday voting for the early voting period that begins on October 15.

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Non-unanimous decisions by county boards of elections automatically go to the state board of elections for a final decision. That vote was taken at the state board meeting in Raleigh on August 20 where in another 3-2 vote, Republicans defeated a minority plan for Sunday voting that was presented by Chatham County Board of Elections member Laura Heise. Click here to read the full text of board member Heise's presentation along with supporting documentation.

 

Over 500 written comments that were submitted by Chatham County citizens nearly unanimously supported voting on at least one Sunday during early voting. A sample of those comments can be seen here.

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There's a history of how all 100 counties and the NC State Board of Elections came to have 3-2 Republican majorities. Legislative Republicans wrote a deceptive bill designated as SB 382. You can read about it and see a photographic record of it here with a story and photographs by Greg Stewart.