Harnett County elections board votes to craft plan to move early voting out of schools

The Harnett County Board of Elections voted to direct staff to develop a plan of implementation to remove early voting from all Harnett County schools and identify alternative early voting sites, a motion the board carried after public comment and deliberation.

The motion, offered by the board chair, asked staff to produce a statutory plan to replace school-based early voting locations with alternative sites. The chair described the step as a starting point required by statute and said the plan would examine current sites and potential alternatives and return to the board for final action.

Public commenters and several board members said the move responds to safety concerns after a recent school shooting cited in the meeting. At the same time, many speakers warned the change could suppress turnout if alternative early voting locations are less convenient for seniors and other voters.

Lynn Danke of Sprout Springs thanked the board for redrawing precinct lines and adding Election Day polling places in Barbecue and Anderson Creek, but urged the board to address early voting access in western Harnett. Danke provided numbers during public comment, saying total registered voters in western Harnett are “approximately 43,415” while registered voters in the rest of the county total “approximately 50,213,” and added that western Harnett currently has one early voting location while other parts of the county have three.

“Numbers show that with only 1 designated early voting facility in Western Harnett County, the same congestions at the polls will continue during early voting if there is no change,” Danke said.

Margaret Mueller, speaking for the Northwest precinct, urged removing early voting from schools for student safety and said older voters can adapt to different sites over a 15–17 day early voting period. “If that becomes a challenge, we will do what we always do when stumped by something new. We'll ask our grandchildren,” Mueller said.

Caitlin Plansky of Northwestern Harnett said the board’s duty is to ensure accessible voting for all and warned that changes without careful planning could “have a serious impact on the most vulnerable members of our population.”

Others pushed back. Alan Warman and Richard Chapman said they had not seen factual evidence of threats to students tied to early voting at school sites and warned that moving polling places could create confusion and suppress turnout for seniors. Jonathan Patrick, chairman of the Harnett County Democratic Party, emphasized turnout and urged options that preserve access for all voters.

Board discussion made clear the motion is a planning directive, not an immediate relocation. Board members said staff would consult facilities management, the county manager and other stakeholders to identify alternate sites, consider curbside voting logistics, and return recommendations to the board. One board member said they were not comfortable with wording that explicitly stated “getting out of the schools,” preferring language about reviewing precinct and early voting locations.

The board chair noted the statutory process for precinct appointments and voting-site changes can require unanimous local action or referral to the State Board of Elections; the chair referenced a recent Cumberland County decision and said the planning step begins that process. Several commenters and at least one board member raised concerns about using churches as neutral voting sites and noted state law requires neutral spaces free of religious or political materials during voting.

The board approved the planning motion by voice vote; the meeting record shows one member voted “nay” while the remaining voting members said “aye.” Chair remarks during the motion noted the plan is a first step and that any final change would return to this board for approval.

The board also approved routine business during the meeting including minutes, ballot duplication procedures, municipal early-voting official appointments, and an updated capital improvement plan; several of those votes were taken without extended debate and were approved by voice vote.

The board directed staff to begin the plan of implementation and to bring findings and recommendations back to the board for further action and potential formal adoption.