The State Has Made It Harder for Students to Vote
North Carolina has eliminated on-campus early-voting locations at several universities in 2026, including for the November general election. The distinction is that these decisions generally removed early-voting sites, not necessarily all Election Day polling places on those campuses.
But hundreds of student decided to march 45 minutes despite the challenge from the state. [The Grio, Brandon Caldwell, October 16, 2026 – North Carolina A&T, UNC Greensboro and Bennett College students march to polling location after campus polling locations were removed
Students walked about 45 minutes to cast ballots on the first day of North Carolina’s early voting, which runs through Oct. 31.]
North Carolina A&T State University – No campus early-voting site for the 2026 elections. Students marched to an off-campus voting location in October.
University of North Carolina at Greensboro – Its on-campus early-voting location was not included in the 2026 plan.
Elon University – Its early-voting site was excluded from the March primary plan.
Western Carolina University – Its established early-voting site was closed for the March primary.
There is an important qualification: North Carolina A&T and UNC Greensboro had hosted early-voting sites during the 2024 presidential election, but county officials said those campuses had not hosted early voting during previous midterm elections. So describing the 2026 decision simply as closing previously permanent sites leaves out relevant history.
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