Mark Up Conduct at the Voting Site 08 NCAC 10C.0104

08 NCAC 10C .0104      CONDUCT AT VOTING SITES

(a) The chief judge and judges shall ensure peace and good order at the voting site in accordance with 08 NCAC 10B .0101 and G.S. 163-48 by requiring persons at the voting site to comply with this Rule. This Rule applies to persons who are located on a portion of in the vicinity of the voting site property that is subject to the control of the county board of elections and to persons who make or cause noise that is audible within the voting enclosure, regardless of their location.

(b) Persons at a voting site shall only engage in electioneering-related activities while in outside the designated electioneering buffer zone.

(c) Noise and sound that is disruptive to the voting site process shall be addressed by the chief judge or a judge as follows:

(1) No person outside of the voting place  in the vicinity of a voting site during the hours of voting shall make or cause any noise at a volume that is audible to the chief judge or a judge when that official is in the voting enclosure and that is disruptive to the voting process. 

(2) If the chief judge or a judge determines that a person has made or is making a noise in violation of this Rule, they shall inform the person(s) that the noise is disrupting the orderly conduct of voting and the ability for persons to communicate when they are  within the voting enclosure. The chief judge or judge shall require the person(s) to decrease the volume such that it is no longer audible in the voting enclosure disruptive.

(3) If the volume of the noise remains disruptive to the voting process after the chief judge has directed reduction of the noise level, local law enforcement shall be notified to compel reduction in noise and to remove the offending person(s)  from the vicinity of the voting site.

(2)  No person outside of the voting place at a voting site shall use a sound amplification device during the hours of voting. If the chief judge or a judge determines that a person at the voting site is using a sound amplification device in violation of this Rule, they shall inform the person that the use of the device is disrupting the orderly conduct of voting and the ability for persons to communicate when they are within the voting enclosure and electioneering zones. The chief judge or judge shall require the person to cease operation of the device and remove the device from the voting site. For

the purposes of this Rule, “sound amplification device” means a mechanical or electronic device that increases a sound’s volume, including portable speakers, bullhorns, megaphones, public address systems, vehicle-mounted speakers or audio systems, and any vehicle’s internal audio system that is audible beyond the interior of the vehicle. A sound amplification device does not include a device that is used for accessibility or emergency purposes, or that is used by or at the request of the chief judge or a judge when facilitating the orderly conduct of voting at the voting site. 

History Note:                   Authority G.S. 163-22; 163-48; 163-129; 163-166.4; 163-166.5; 163-166.6; 163-166.7;

                                          Eff. September 1, 2026.