DUBLIN — Bladen County’s Board of Elections hosts two educational seminars Thursday at Bladen Community College’s auditorium.

The sessions are mandatory by Session Law 2018-144, but they are also considered useful knowledge for those who wish to know more about the election process. Specifically to be shared is information about voter photo identification, which goes into effect in the 2020 election cycle.

There will also be information on voting options to include absentee-by-mail, one-stop early voting and Election Day voting. Provisional voting is another topic on the agenda, along with the availability of free North Carolina voter ID cards and residency requirements for voting.

There is no charge for the seminars. The first is at 10 a.m. and the second is at 6 p.m.

Anyone with questions about the event can call 910-862-6951, email elections@bladenco.org or go to ncsbe.gov/Voter-ID.

The college is located at 7418 N.C. 41 outside Dublin.

Voter ID is not a part of the 2019 election, either for the special election coming Sept. 10 or the Nov. 5 municipal election. In 2020, voters in North Carolina will be asked to provide photo identification when voting in-person or absentee-by-mail, with some exceptions.

Those who do not show photo ID will be allowed to vote provisionally. The ballot will count if the voter brings acceptable photo ID to the county Board of Elections office before the canvass, or if the voter signs an affidavit declaring that a reasonable impediment prevented showing photo ID.

Thsoe who vote by mail must enclose a copy of their photo ID unless an affidavit is signed declaring that a resonable impediment prevented the voter from enclosing it.

Free photo ID is available at each county Board of Elections office any time until Friday before the election, the state board’s website says.

North Carolina moved to voter ID after the 2018 general election, when 55 percent of voters approved a constitutional amendment requiring it.

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Alan Wooten

Bladen Journal

Alan Wooten can be reached at 910-247-9132 or awooten@bladenjournal.com. Twitter: @alanwooten19.