WHITEVILLE, N.C. (June 25, 2026) — Columbus County residents are calling on their board of elections again to reject a proposal that would dramatically reduce early voting access ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
The Columbus County Board of Elections plans to vote Monday, June 29, 2026, on whether to close two of its five early voting sites, a move that will leave thousands of voters facing longer lines, longer drives, and fewer options in the third-largest county in the state.
Ahead of Monday’s vote, Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) sent a letter to the board of elections detailing the impact on voters if the board moved forward with the proposal, which would close the Ransom Event Center and Fair Bluff Fire Department sites.
Many voters who live near the Ransom Event Center would face at least an hour of additional travel time. Fair Bluff voters would have to drive 24 miles round-trip to reach the next-closest site, and they would arrive to find longer-than-usual lines since fewer sites would be serving the same number of voters. Those burdens fall hardest on the elderly, disabled, and low-income voters who make up a significant share of the communities these sites serve, according to the letter.
“As public servants, members of County Boards of Elections are expected to serve their communities and take an oath to ‘well and truly execute the duties’ of their office,” the letter states. “While we understand there may be improper pressures on members to close or restrict early voting, we urge you to stay true to your obligations to instead implement an early voting plan designed to serve all voters in your county.”
The proposal to slash early voting sites came from Chair Jillian McPherson-Edge at the June 8 board meeting, where she also contradicted the plan by expressing concern about low voter turnout. In the last two general elections, more than half of Columbus County voters cast their ballots during early voting.
Community members showed up in force at that same meeting to oppose an earlier proposal to reduce the county to just one early voting site. While that pressure worked and the board pulled back, the current proposal still raises serious concerns.
Even without a reduction in early voting sites, with extremely limited transportation options, many voters in Columbus County already face barriers getting to the polls.
“It makes no sense to go against the will of voters and reduce access to the polls,” said Curtis Hill, president of the Columbus County chapter of the NAACP. “Despite many barriers, Columbus County voters are still determined to make it to the polls, and we hope the board passes an early voting plan that protects access.”
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Southern Coalition for Social Justice came together in 2007 to give Black, Brown, and low-income people better resources in the fight for justice across the South. We are lawyers, social scientists, and communications professionals working to dismantle racism and oppression in the criminal legal system, in our environment, and at the ballot box. Learn more at southerncoalition.org and follow our work on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn.