In some counties, the number of unaffiliated voters eclipses voters registered as Republicans or Democrats.
Author: Matthew Ablon (WCNC)
Published: 10:33 PM EST March 12, 2022
Updated: 11:03 PM EST March 12, 2022
RALEIGH, N.C. — With the 2022 midterm elections just around the corner, voters will be heading to the polls to decide who will represent them for all sorts of leadership roles, from local governments to state and federal seats. As incumbent officials and challengers alike ramp up their campaigns, they not only will want to appeal to their own party's base, but those who haven't yet picked a party.
In North Carolina, Democrats and Republicans will have their work cut out for them; roughly one-third of all active, inactive, and temporarily registered voters in the Tar Heel State are listed as unaffiliated.
Dr. Michael Bitzer, a professor of politics at Catawba College, shared a look at voter registration data from the North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE), which was released on Saturday. Of North Carolina's roughly 7.2 million voter pool, just shy of 2.5 million voters are not affiliated with the Republican, Democratic, or Libertarian parties. That means roughly 35% of the state's voter pool hasn't picked a party.