With early voting for primary elections beginning this month, students at NC A&T State University and UNCG are fighting efforts they say make voting more difficult.
On Jan. 27, students at NC A&T, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Western Carolina University, and the College Democrats of North Carolina filed a federal lawsuit against the State Board of Elections and local boards of elections regarding their decisions not to include their campuses as early voting sites this year.
“This case is about targeted efforts to place additional, unnecessary, burdensome, and ultimately unjustifiable obstacles between students at three North Carolina universities,” the suit states, “including the nation’s largest historically Black university—and this fundamental constitutional right.”
The lawsuit was filed in the weeks after both the Guilford County Board of Elections and the North Carolina State Board of Elections chose to exclude early voting sites at NC A&T or UNCG for this year’s midterm election. The state board upheld a majority plan from Jackson County that omitted an early-voting site at Western Carolina University as well.
The suit asks the court to restore the voting sites at the three campuses before early voting begins on Feb. 12.
During last week’s 66th anniversary commemoration of the Greensboro sit-ins, Frank McCain Jr.—son of one of the A&T Four—tied the work of Aggies today to the Civil Rights work of his father’s generation.
“I think what my father and the others confronted during that period of time was a system that normalized exclusion while calling it order,” McCain said. “And so today, I think we see a lot of similar patterns.”
“I think history shows us that voter suppression often disguises itself as administrative decision-making,” McCain said. “Particularly when Black political participation is at stake.”
‘A Modern-Day Poll Tax On Students’
For weeks ahead of the vote, students from both NC A&T and the UNCG showed up to meetings, held press conferences, and sent messages to board members, urging them to include the two campuses in this year’s primary election.
As The Assembly reported, neither campus has historically been included as an early-voting site during a mid-term election. They have been used as early voting and election day sites during presidential elections.
During county deliberations in November, Republicans cited lower voter turnout at the campuses in their argument against including them this year. The board also voted to add two additional early-voting sites for this year’s primary, which brings the total up to 10 sites compared to 8 in previous primary elections.
But students at NC A&T say not having a site on campus poses specific challenges for those without cars, busy class schedules, and limited funds to pay for Ubers or Lyfts.
One of the plaintiffs in the suit, Zayveon Davis, is a student at NC A&T. He lives on campus and doesn’t have a car, according to the suit. He would have to rely on public transportation or a ride from friends to access the polls this year.
“The elimination of on-campus early voting makes it significantly harder for him to vote, forcing him to navigate voting around his work and academic obligations in ways he would not otherwise have to,” the suit states.
Western Carolina University students Zach Powell and Rose Daphne, and UNCG student Raquel Nelson are also plaintiffs in the suit.
“There are thousands of students who do not have accessible transportation from campus to polling sites off campus.”
Terrence Olu Rouse
Jeff Carmon, a Democrat on the state board of elections, said he couldn’t comment on current litigation but told The Assembly he was “inspired by [the students] tenacity and desire to ensure the ideals and promises of the Constitution are not easily dismissed.”
On Jan. 23, NC A&T students Terrence Olu Rouse and Shia Rozier, both juniors, held a press conference at the Beloved Community Center in Greensboro. Their aim was simple: to raise funds to shuttle students to and from the nearest polling site once early voting starts.
“This is a modern-day poll tax on us students,” Rouse said at the press conference. “There are thousands of students who do not have accessible transportation from campus to polling sites off campus.”
NC A&T does not allow freshmen to have vehicles on campus. The campus shuttle also does not go downtown unless specifically requested, according to the school’s website.
To solve the problem, Rouse and Rozier have started a grassroots effort they’re calling Protect Ours, which is raising funds to run a private shuttle service between campus and the Old Guilford County Courthouse polling site (301 W. Market St.) downtown. The effort is not affiliated with the university.
The cost, they said, would be $1,500 per day to run the shuttle during the first five days of early voting, which starts on Feb. 12. The students aim to raise $5,000 for the effort, they said at the press conference. By the end of last week, the group surpassed that goal by nearly $200.
While the organization’s immediate goal is transportation, Rouse and Rozier said they have future goals for Protect Ours as well.
In the spring, the group will focus on canvassing and phone banking to advocate for an early-voting site on campus for the fall. Beyond that, the group will work to connect with other universities locally and across the state to get early-voting sites on campuses.
“We want to stand in solidarity with these schools as they work to get their student vote out and secure voting access on these campuses,” Rozier said.
According to election experts, having early-voting sites on college and university campuses increases voter turnout and engagement.
On-campus early voting and election day sites increase turnout by 7.39 percentage points, according to a study by Yael Bromberg, an election expert who teaches at American University Washington College of Law.
“This is not a small number,” Bromberg told the Assembly in December. “This is actually hugely significant in terms of youth voter engagement.”
As part of its efforts, Protect Ours will host a march to the Old Guilford County Courthouse on Feb. 12, starting at NC A&T’s Dudley Memorial Building.
“We are more determined than ever to ensure our voices are heard,” Rozier said. “It has been made abundantly clear that there is no government ‘Hail Mary’ coming to save student voters. So if no one else will protect our access to the ballot, we will. That’s what ‘Protect Ours’ is.”