New North Carolina Project Weekly Bulletin

The May Primary, voting rights, and more from the desk of our digital director, Kristen Havlik.

TAKE ACTION NOW

We're canvassing in Greensboro and phone banking this weekend! Join our weekly phone bank on Tuesdays at 5pm or our text bank at 4pm or our Thursday text bank at 6pm! 

The urgency of this moment should not go unnoticed- it's more than people on the ballots. It's the issues we care about and are affected by everyday - housing, low wages, climate change, COVID-19, public education and so much more. 

Don't want to knock doors, make phone calls or send texts? Fund someone who will, because this work that we are doing on the ground is so necessary. 

Follow the New North Carolina Project Foundation on Social Media!

Down Payment Assistance Program in Durham Opens

The Triangle area has seen a rapid influx of people moving to the area, especially over the last two years. As we face a large demand and little supply, elected officials are doing what they can to help mitigate some of the stress of trying to buy a home. 

This week the City of Durham opened a Down Payment Assistance Program in partnership with Community Home Trust. Applicants can now receive up to $20,000 in down payment and closing cost assistance through the program. Applicants must have lived in Durham for at least one year to apply. 

Do You Have a Plan to Vote in May?

The May Primary will be here before we know it! Getting engaged in #EveryElectionEveryTime is important for us to have a democracy on every level. Make sure you and everyone you know has a voting plan! The following deadlines are important for the 3 ways you can vote- in-person early voting, in-person voting on Election Day or vote by mail!

1. 1. Registration Deadline to vote in-person on May 17 is April 22!
   2. In-Person Early Voting starts on April 28 and ends on May 14. You can also same day register or update your voter registration during early voting.
   3. The Absentee/Vote by Mail ballot request portal is open NOW! The NC State Board of Elections will start to send out absentee ballots on March 28. The last day to request an absentee ballot is on May 10, but we highly recommend requesting NOW and returning your ballot ASAP due to lengthy mail times. Vote by mail ballots have to be postmarked by May 17 in order to be counted.
   4. The Primary is on May 17 and polling places will be open from 6:30am to 7:30pm.

Who can vote in the NC Primaries?

1. NC citizens who will be 18 years old by the November 2022 General Election can vote in this election- must be pre-registered to vote. Learn more about that HERE.
2. Unaffiliated/independent voters can still vote in the primary- you will need to choose a ballot when voting- either Democrat or Republican.

A photo ID is still not required to vote in NC. (We are still actively monitoring this situation as it was recently argued at the US Supreme Court.)

Unlock Our Vote

Earlier this week, a 2-1 court struck down the law that was banning 56,000+ people from being able to register to vote if they were charged with a felony but was still serving parole or probation. Unfortunately, the State Board of Elections has now said as of yesterday (3/31) that will will not accept applications for the May 2022 primary as an appeal has already been filed. If board of elections offices receive applications from people still serving felony probations or paroles, they will mark the applications as "incomplete". We are keeping a close eye on this as we want to make sure to get all of these people affected by this decision, registered once they are able to successfully register.

North Carolina Not Meeting Climate Action Goals

Today is the first day of Earth Month and NC is not meeting this moment when it comes to climate action. The Environmental Defense Fund released a report on Monday that says that North Carolina is failing at meeting the goals set in place to help lessen our carbon emissions. With the current plan that was set in May 2021, we will achieve only a 27% reduction in emissions by 2025, missing our goal by 40%. And the goal set with House Bill 951, we would achieve a 28% to 38% reduction in emissions by 2030- failing by 50% of our target. 

We can no longer afford to keep delaying effective climate action. We must hold corporations accountable to make real changes to reduce the problem that they made. Our health and wellness is counting on our elected officials to do more. 

Number of Unaffiliated Voters Surpasses Registered

Democrats and Republicans in NC

Last week, North Carolina unaffiliated/independent voters have surpassed Democrats and Republicans in their registration numbers. There are 2.5 million unaffiliated/independent registered voters, 2.4 million Democrats, 2.1 million Republicans and 48,000 libertarians. The Green and Constitution Parties were previously recognized parties but lost their recognition after the 2020 election. The Green Party has been working to get back on the ballot for 2022. 

NC Policy Watch reported from Meredith College political science professor David McLennan that only 10% of unaffiliated/independent voters are truly independent. So why are more and more people registering as unaffiliated or independent? The Charlotte Observer recently interviewed some unaffiliated voters in Mecklenburg County about their reasoning for registering outside of the two party system- many don't fully agree with either party or don't like the party label.

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Check Your Voter Registration

We’re no stranger to voter suppression in our state. So we encourage you to check your voter registration often as board of elections offices purge voters from time to time.

Help us reach our goals in 2022

With your generosity, we are able to build a permanent infrastructure that will increase voter registration and turnout as well as take care of our communities of color, in and outside of election cycles.

Paid for the New North Carolina Project 

The New North Carolina Project
6012 Bayfield Pkwy
Suite 142
Concord, NC 28027
United States  

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