Local faith leaders and voters urge Rockingham elections board to keep Zion Baptist as polling site

ROCKINGHAM COUNTY, N.C. — Local faith leaders and voters called on the Rockingham County Board of Elections on June 17 to keep the Moss Street precinct at Zion Baptist Church after allegations surfaced that the site was unsafe.

The appeals came during the board's public comment period, when several speakers described Zion Baptist Church as a long-standing community polling place and questioned motives behind a request to relocate the precinct.

Reverend Marcus Fairley, pastor of Zion Baptist Church, said Zion opened its Family Life Center for voting “so that citizens of this county could come in and cast their ballot.” He told the board the facility has hosted voting for more than 20 days during recent election cycles and that he saw “no disturbance nor incident” while polls operated there. “We opened the Family Life Center so that citizens of this county could come in and cast their ballot,” Fairley said.

Rochelle Tucker, minister of music at Zion Baptist Church, said the safety incidents cited by others occurred in the surrounding neighborhood and were closer to Annie Penn Hospital than to the church. Tucker urged the board not to relocate the Moss Street precinct, saying moving it would “lead to another whole period of trying to reeducate folks concerning the location of the new precinct” and that the church’s parking and access were sufficient.

Malcolm Allen of Eaton said the request to move the precinct appeared politically motivated and urged the board to deny such requests. Jeff Webster, chair of the county Democratic Party, told the board state and federal laws protect voters from intimidation and noted local safety measures such as the 50-foot no-electioneering buffer at entrances and cooperation with law enforcement.

Board member Thurman Hampton reported that he spoke with the Reidsville Police Department deputy chief, who described the incident as involving teenagers and a firearm that occurred roughly 400 to 500 yards — about “two football fields” — from the polling place. Hampton said the deputy chief told him the polling place itself was not implicated and the area is generally safe.

The speakers represented a mix of precinct volunteers, church leaders and party activists who said relocating the polling place would risk confusing voters and restricting access, particularly for African American voters who speakers said rely on familiar precinct locations. Several speakers invoked the Voting Rights Act of 1965 in arguing that precinct moves should be evaluated for their effect on access.

The board did not take formal action to relocate the Moss Street precinct during the meeting. Agenda and minutes were approved earlier in the session, and the meeting proceeded to other items.

Public commenters addressing the precinct issue spoke during the board’s public comment period; their remarks were not recorded as formal board findings or votes. The board indicated no change of precinct location at the June 17 meeting.