NC State Board of Elections approves use of student, employee IDs in upcoming elections

RALEIGH, N.C. (WITN) - You may now be able to use your student or employee ID when casting your ballot in upcoming elections in North Carolina.

The State Board of Elections has approved nearly 100 student and employee identification cards that can be used in the upcoming 2025 municipal elections and the 2026 primary and general elections in North Carolina.

The newly approved student IDs include those from all UNC system schools, plus several other colleges and universities that applied for ID eligibility this year.

Employee IDs for many educational institutions will also be accepted, as well as cards from charter schools and local and county governments.

Beaufort County Community College, Elizabeth City State University students can use their student IDs for the upcoming election cycle.

Students and employees of ECU and Pitt Community College are eligible to vote with their respective IDs.

All approved IDs include a photograph to confirm a person’s identity when they are checked in to vote.

You can find a full list of approved IDs on the State Board’s website.

These IDs are to be only used for the 2025 and 2026 elections and will remain valid for use as a voter’s photo ID until December 31st, 2026.

The Board accepted applications for ID approval between February 1st and April 1st and may consider additional application periods for the 2026 elections.

All previous ID approvals expired on December 31st, 2024.

Municipal elections in North Carolina will be held in September, October and November of this year.

The primary is in March 2026, followed by the general election in November 2026.