Catawba College has a second opportunity to join Livingstone and Rowan-Cabarrus colleges and promote the importance of voting as a civic duty during the 2024 general elections.

Catawba did not provide this opportunity to their students during the 2023 municipal elections. Catawba grads and students, consider sharing this information about the application process to approve student and employee IDs. Application process: 11/13/23 – 12/15/23.

For immediate release, October 24, 2023

Raleigh, N.C. — The State Board of Elections will soon open another application period for eligible educational institutions and government agencies to apply to have their student and employee photo IDs approved for voting purposes in the 2024 elections.

The State Board will accept new applications from November 13, 2023, through December 15, 2023. In July 2023, the State Board approved 100 student and employee ID cards. Those IDs are approved through the end of 2024. These institutions do not need to reapply. 

Voter Photo ID Background

With the start of the municipal elections this year, registered voters in North Carolina now will be asked to present photo identification to vote. For more information on the photo ID requirement, including the current list of acceptable IDs, see Voter ID. 

Student identification cards issued by North Carolina public or private universities and colleges, as well as employee identification cards issued by state and local government entities and charter schools, are valid forms of photo ID for voting when approved by the State Board.

Many other types of photo ID, including driver’s licenses, also will be accepted for voting. 

“Once again, we encourage all eligible educational institutions and government employers to apply for their IDs to be approved for voting. Getting their IDs approved will help ensure their students and employees are best equipped to participate in our state’s elections,” said Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the State Board of Elections. “The State Board is ready to assist these institutions and governmental entities as they work through this approval process.”

How to Apply

To request approval for use in the 2024 primary and general elections, an institution must provide a signed Student or Employee Identification Approval Request Form and a digital image of the ID card to the State Board on or before December 15, 2023. All colleges and universities, whether public or private, may seek approval of their student ID cards. Public colleges and universities may also seek approval of their employee ID cards, but they must submit separate approval forms for each type of ID. See request forms and instructions:

• November 2023 Student ID Approval Request Form (fillable PDF)
• November 2023 Student ID Instructions (PDF)
• November 2023 Employee ID Approval Request Form (fillable PDF)
• November 2023 Employee ID Instructions (PDF)

The State Board of Elections will review submissions to ensure they comply with criteria in state law. It will publish a list of newly approved ID cards by early 2024. 

Cards approved in this round will remain valid for use as a voter’s photo ID through December 31, 2024.

For government agencies and educational institutions that had ID cards previously approved, please see the ID Card Approval Flow Chart to determine next steps.

State Board staff are in contact with education, governmental, and advocacy partners to ensure details of the approval process are shared with all institutions.

Educational institutions and government agencies with questions about the process should email [email protected] or call (919) 814-0700.