Requests rise to 908;state up 1,655 percent

ELIZABETHTOWN — Bladen County’s requests for absentee by mail ballots has risen to 908.

The number of statewide absentee ballot requests is 9.1 percent, or 643,400 of the 7,100,738 registered voters. Bladen County’s requests are about 4.1 percent of its 22,341 registered voters.

The statewide pace compared to four years ago, however, is off the charts and due mainly to the coronavirus. The state Board of Elections said in its report Friday morning that the requests statewide are up 1,655 percent compared to the 2016 general election. At the same time then, there were 38,871 absentee requests.

For the statewide requests, more than 337,000 — 52.4 percent — have come from Democrats. More than 200,000 — 31.1 percent — came from unaffiliated voters. Republicans make up 16.1 percent.

Bladen County’s 22,341 registered voters is 10,709 Democrats, 6,909 unaffiliated, and 4,651 Republicans. There are 61 Libertarians, seven in the Constitution Party, and four in the Green Party.

This election cycle will decide:

• seven of nine county commissioner seats, one of which is for two years to fill an unexpired term.

• three seats on the county Board of Education.

• one seat on the Bladen County Soil & Water Conservation District board.

• the nation’s president, one U.S. Senate seat for North Carolina and the U.S. House District 7 seat that will now encompass all of Bladen County.

• governor and the nine Council of State positions in the Executive Branch, and all 170 seats in the North Carolina General Assembly. Relative to Bladen County are the state Senate District 8 and House District 22 seats.

• seats on the state’s Supreme Court and Court of Appeals.

The last day to request an absentee by mail ballot, which any registered voter can do, is Oct. 27. The regular voter registration deadline is Oct. 9; those not making that date would have to register and cast their ballot by going to an early voting site between Oct. 15 and Oct. 31.

Election Day is Nov. 3.