North Carolina passes constitutional amendment expanding photo ID to mail-in voting

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RALEIGH, N.C. (WBTV) - North Carolina voters have approved a state constitutional amendment requiring all voters, including those casting absentee ballots by mail, to present photo identification, according to Associated Press projections.

State election data showed that with all precincts reporting across North Carolina, 2,463,276 voters voted “for” the amendment, with 1,669,764 “against.” That translates to 59.6% “for,” and 40.4% “against.”

The referendum extends constitutional photo ID requirements to absentee-by-mail voting, amending language that previously applied only to in-person voters.

While state law already requires photo identification for all voters, mail-in voters who cannot provide a photo ID due to reasons such as a lost or stolen card have been allowed under statute to submit their driver’s license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number.

The referendum to change the state constitution was placed on the ballot by the Republican-led General Assembly over objections from legislative Democrats.

Previous coverage: North Carolina voters already approved photo ID rules and 7% tax cap — why are lawmakers back for more?

🪪 What’s old, what’s new, and what’s at stake?

Voter ID laws have long sparked fierce debate across North Carolina.

In 2013, state lawmakers passed a sweeping election law enacting a strict photo ID mandate and cutting the early voting period.

A federal appeals court struck down the mandate in July 2016 after finding legislators targeted Black voters with “almost surgical precision.”

Republicans successfully pushed for tighter voter ID laws in 2018, when North Carolina voters approved a referendum amending the state constitution to require photo ID in person at the polls.

A federal judge upheld that requirement after the NAACP challenged it under the U.S. Constitution and the Voting Rights Act.

Republican lawmakers defended the 2018 measure as race-neutral and broader in the types of qualifying IDs accepted.

On Nov. 3, 2026, voters chose to extend those constitutional ID requirements to mail-in ballots.

Track live election results here