People with disabilities may need assistance to vote. You might need to ask for help to vote either because you can’t read the ballot independently or because you aren’t able to mark the ballot. You might have trouble getting into the building at your polling site, or have trouble standing in line. It is important to know your voting rights so you know what you can ask for. It is also important so that you know what to do if you face any problems at the polls.
You have the right to:
1. Vote privately and independently.
2. Vote even if you have a guardian.
- You don’t need your guardian’s permission to vote.
3. Ask for help if you need it.
- This includes help with reading the ballot and marking the ballot.
4. Bring someone with you to help you vote, or ask a poll worker to help you.
- You may not want to share information about your ballot with the person who goes with you to the polls. You have the right to ask for assistance from a poll worker if you need it to keep your ballot private from the people in your life.
5. Have an accessible polling site.
- This includes accessible parking, curbside voting and a working accessible voting machine.
6. Use whatever assistive technology you need to vote.
- Every poll site should have an assistive technology device that is accessible, even if other voters are using pen and paper to vote. In counties where all voters use a machine, those machines are typically accessible to voters with disabilities. The machines can be operated with audio controls and push button controls. It also has other types of controls that connect to a voter’s existing assistive technology, like a straw that allows for breath control.
7. You do not have to pass any sort of test or prove to poll workers that you have the capacity to vote.
8. In order to vote in person, you only need to be able to communicate who you are and where you live.
- That communication can be verbal; It can be written; and it could be with assistance from someone accompanying the voter. If a poll worker tells you that you must be able to state your name and address clearly in order to vote, they are wrong. You may communicate that information however you need to.
9. In North Carolina you now need a photo ID to vote.
- Voters will be asked to show ID for the fall 2023 municipal elections and all other elections moving forward.
- Learn about the new voter photo ID requirement.
- If a voter does not have a driver’s license or other acceptable photo ID, they can get one for free from their county board of elections. Learn more at Get a Free Voter Photo ID.
10. No one can tell you who to vote for.
Resources
What to do if you have a problem voting because of your disability.