North Carolina HBCU students march miles to vote after campus polling sites closed

Following the closure of on-campus early-voting polling sites by North Carolina election officials, students from North Carolina A&T State University, Bennett College, and UNCG organized multi-mile marches to cast their ballots. Student groups filed lawsuits alleging voter suppression, while organizing shuttle services and voter mobilization events. Simultaneously, a new state rule requiring mail-in voters to seal both inner and outer envelopes has led to hundreds of disqualified ballots.

Student voting marches and mobilization

• ▪Students from North Carolina A&T State University, Bennett College, and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro marched to reach off-campus early-voting locations
• ▪Student organizers at North Carolina A&T State University established the student-led group Protect Ours to operate voter shuttles and hosted a Votecoming: Party at the Polls mobilization event with When We All Vote during homecoming week.
• ▪During a second North Carolina voting march, actor Marsai Martin and Love Island USA winner Trinity Tatum joined hundreds of students

Impact of campus polling site closures

• ▪Without an on-campus polling site, over 60% of Western Carolina University students who do not own cars must walk nearly two miles along a four-lane highway lacking sidewalks or guardrails to reach their nearest polling location.
• ▪The Republican-led North Carolina State Board of Elections removed on-campus early-voting polling sites from North Carolina A&T State University, Bennett College, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Western Carolina University, and Elon University late last year.
• ▪North Carolina A&T State University is the largest Historically Black College and University in the United States, while Western Carolina University's former campus polling site served more Black voters than any other site in its county during the 2024 election.

Lawsuit challenging campus polling place closures

• ▪The lawsuit filed by College Democrats of North Carolina stated that state and county officials ignored warnings that closing campus polling places would disproportionately burden young and Black voters.
• ▪In January 2026, the College Democrats of North Carolina chapters at North Carolina A&T, UNC Greensboro, and Western Carolina University filed a lawsuit against the North Carolina State Board of Elections over campus polling closures.

Dual-envelope rule and ballot rejections

• ▪North Carolina's statewide mail-in ballot rejection rate rose above 3% following the implementation of the dual-envelope sealing rule, according to election officials.
• ▪Last month, the Republican-led North Carolina State Board of Elections enacted a rule requiring mail-in voters to seal both an inner envelope containing their ballot and an outer envelope containing their ID copy.
• ▪As of October 27, 2026, unsealed inner envelopes caused the disqualification of approximately 300 mail-in ballots in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, with only about a hundred voters successfully submitting replacement ballots.

Debate and ruling on dual-envelope rule

• ▪North Carolina State Board of Elections spokesman Jason Tyson stated the dual-envelope rule prevents potential ballot tampering, while Common Cause North Carolina director Brooks Fuller characterized unsealed inner envelopes as harmless voter oversight.
• ▪A federal judge declined a lawsuit request by voting rights groups to block North Carolina's dual-envelope mail-in ballot requirement during the week prior to October 27, 2026.