Western North Carolina sees voter registration surge; up over 30,000 since 2020

FILE Data from the Board of Elections shows that there has been an increase of over 30,000 voters registered across six major counties in Western North Carolina as of July 27. (Photo credit: WLOS Staff)

By Kimberly King, WLOS, Monday, July 29, 2024

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — Data from the Board of Elections shows that there are 453,440 voters registered across six major counties in Western North Carolina as of July 27.

That number is up by 30,355 voters compared to July 2020 in the last presidential election year cycle, when 423,085 voters in all parties were registered.

“We have seen quite a bit of folks coming in grabbing entire packets of applications,” said Aaron Troutman, elections specialist for Henderson County. “We haven’t seen those returned applications come back yet.”

Troutman and a spokeswoman for Buncombe County’s Board of Elections attribute the rise in voter registrations to population growth in the counties.

But in Rutherford County, Elections Board Director Dawn Lovelace considers the county’s higher registration numbers to be more than just the county’s population increase.

Rutherford County has seen a population increase from 2020 to 2023 by 1.6%,” wrote Lovelace by email. “That would attribute some to the increase. But I really think what helps us the most is registration and pre-registration of 16-year-olds from the DMV.

Lovelace said the pre-registration of 16-year-olds through the DMV is beneficial and holds each teen’s information in the state database.

When they turn 18, their application is processed,” she said. “I think most people don’t think to register until they get ready to vote, and sometimes it’s too late. These programs help to get everyone that is eligible and who wants to, registered.

News 13 examined registration data from the following counties dating through the end of July: Buncombe, Henderson, Haywood, Rutherford, Transylvania and McDowell.

There are consistent trends in all six counties examined that show consistently higher women registration numbers compared to men, a decline in Democrats registered, a slight increase in Republicans registered and a major growth in those choosing to register as unaffiliated.

Political experts tell News 13 that while voters may register as unaffiliated, the vast majority typically lean Democrat or Republican.

“There’s an increase in the number of people who don’t really like either one of the two major parties,” said Dr. Chris Cooper, WCU Chair for the Political Science Department.

Cooper also confirmed the statewide trend of fewer people registering as Democrats.

“They’re down every week, every month, every year,” he said.

Below are the numbers and trends for three of the counties examined. To find your county’s registration numbers search the state site: Voter Registration Statistics.

Buncombe County

Total Registered by the end of July 2024

2024: 212,081
2020: 197,137

Democrats

2024: 72,684
2020: 74,475

Republicans

2024: 45,141
2020: 44,789

Unaffiliated

2024: 92,091
2020: 76,119

Women

2024: 105,842
2020: 101,520

Men

2024: 90,566
2020: 86,090

Henderson County

Total Registered by the end of July 2024

2024: 90,720
2020: 84,014

Democrats

2024: 17,137
2020: 17,296

Republicans

2024: 32,431
2020: 31,090

Unaffiliated

2024: 40,348
2020: 35,056

Women

2024: 46,168
2020: 43,675

Men

2024: 38,983
2020: 36,761

Rutherford County

Total registered by the end of July 2024

2024: 46,998
2020: 43,979

Democrats

2024: 9,560
2020: 12,123

Republicans

2024: 20,431
2020: 17,737

Unaffiliated

2024: 16,646
2020: 13,870

Women

2024: 23,383
2020: 22,603

Men

2024: 20,333
2020: 19,578

UNC Charlotte Political Science Professor Eric Heberlig said the trend of more women registering compared to men is also reflected in national numbers.

“We have seen — over the past decade or so — increases in women’s registrations compared to men’s,” said Heberlig.

With the recent announcement of Vice President Kamala Harris running as the Democrat’s presumptive presidential nominee, Heberlig said he is watching for any significant rise in women registering to vote above what normal trends have been.

“We’re only a week out from the Democratic nominees switching from Joe Biden to Kamala Harris,” said Heberlig. “If we do see a continued increase in female registration, I think we’d suggest Kamala Harris as a candidate is driving at least some of that.”

For now, Heberlig said it is too early to tell.

Read the news story on WLOS here.