Voter registration applications may be obtained free of charge at the Board of Elections office located at 230 Government Center Drive, Suite 38 in Wilmington.

Requests for voter registration applications in quantities of 100 or more require submission of a request form that outlines the planned use of the applications. The request form must also include the requestor’s full name, physical address, mailing address (if different from physical address), telephone number, and email address. Request forms are available at the Board of Elections office, or for quantities of 1000 or more, requests are made directly to the State Board of Elections using the Request for NC Voter Registration Forms for Voter Registration Drives form.

Voter registration applications may be used to:

• Apply to register to vote
• Report a change in party affiliation
• Report a change in address
• Report a name change
• Report a change in other information

To be eligible to register to vote, a person must meet the following qualifications:

1. US Citizen (born or naturalized)
2. Eighteen years of age or older*
3. Resident of North Carolina and New Hanover County for at least 30 days before the date of the next election.
4. Not a convicted felon, or, if a felon, had citizenship rights restored**

*Individuals who will be 18 years of age by the date of the next general election may register to vote at 17 years of age and vote in the preceding primary. Individuals that are at least 16 years old, may also complete a registration form for pre-registration.

**Citizenship and voting rights are automatically restored upon the completion of the FULL sentence, including any probation or parole.

Ultimately it is the duty of the Board of Elections to determine an individual’s eligibility to register to vote.

In order to be eligible to vote in an election, a registrant’s voter registration application must be submitted by the deadline, meaning either hand delivered to the Board of Elections office by 5:00 pm on the 25th day before the election or postmarked by the 25th day before the election.

If the individual or group conducting the voter registration drive fails to return the completed forms to the Board of Elections by this deadline, even properly registered applicants will not be processed in time to register to vote on Election Day.

College Students in New Hanover County should note that their physical address is the street address of their dormitory, if they are living on campus. In addition to this, students must also provide a mailing address different from their on-campus address; such as their campus post office box.

In order to ensure swift processing of voter registration forms, please be sure to keep the following things in mind during your drive:

1. Applications need to be completed using dark colored ink (preferably black).
2. Voter Registration forms need to be returned to this office NO later than 5 days following completion.
3. Only 200 forms can be requested from this office per visit.
4. All forms need to be checked for proper completion before acceptance.
5. The required fields of information on a voter registration application are:
   • Citizenship and Age checkboxes
   • Full Name
   • Date of Birth
   • Address (need physical address and mailing address, if applicable)
   • Signature
   • Any voter registration forms completed by new registrants at voter registration drives or sent by mail must contain the applicant’s North Carolina driver license number, DMV-issued identification card, or the last four digits of the voter’s SSN.
6. If you realize that a registrant has not completed the voter registration form, DO NOT complete the form for them.
7. The “incomplete” form should not be altered, flagged, or written on for any reason by anyone other than the registrant, but should be given to the county board of elections AS IS.
8. The county boards of elections have procedures in place to contact the applicant to retrieve the missing information.