North Carolina
NC voting rights groups ask for clearer voter ID rules for county boards ahead of the first batches of absentee ballots going out Friday | NC Newsline
Some county boards of election violated “the text and spirit” of the voter ID law when they baselessly questioned the reasons voters didn’t have photo identification last November, three voting rights groups told the State Board of Election in a letter.
The Southern Coalition for Social Justice, Common Cause North Carolina, and Democracy North Carolina want the State Board of Elections to make it clear what local boards can and cannot do when they’re considering accepting ballots from people who vote without photo ID.
State Board of Elections officials spoke to reporters on Thursday, a day ahead of the first batch of mail-in ballots for the March 5 primary going out to voters who asked for one. The deadline to request an absentee ballot for the primary is February 27.
At the news conference, State Board of Elections attorney Paul Cox said the letter from the voting rights groups is one of many comments the board has received on voter ID rules. The board is slated to vote on permanent rules later this year, he said. One of the items they’re considering is how to make certain of uniformity across counties in the handling of photo ID issues.
“That is certainly an item that is front of mind for the State Board,” he said.
For the first time in years, voters were asked for valid photo identification when they went to vote last year. Voters who cast mail-in ballots were asked to send in copies of their IDs.
One of the options for people who don’t have IDs is to fill out an exception form with the reason they don’t have one when casting a provisional ballot.
Voter advocacy groups monitored how 35 county elections boards handled ballots with exception forms and found wide variations.
Most voters cast ballots last year without problems. According to information the state board provided, 484 people cast provisional ballots in the November elections for reasons related to photo ID. That’s about one-tenth of 1% of the total vote. Of the 484, 228 ballots were not counted. Forty-three were not counted because county boards of election rejected ID exception forms.
Before accepting a handful of ballots with exception forms, the Guilford County Board of Elections wrote voters accusatory letters claiming they had lied about the reasons they didn’t have ID and telling them they could come to a hearing. One of those letters went to a voter with Huntington’s disease who uses a wheelchair, NC Newsline reported.
The letter from the voter groups said election boards in Guilford, Mecklenburg, and Brunswick violated the State Board’s instructions not to second-guess the reasonableness of voters’ reasons for not having identification.
At the statewide elections conference in a few weeks, county elections board members and local election workers will again talk about the legal requirements for county board review of photo ID, Cox said.
The municipal elections offered the chance to see if counties understood the State Board’s guidance, Brinson Bell said.
“We just try to work on continuous improvement and try to serve the voters,” she said.
People who vote absentee must provide a copy of their photo identification with their returned ballot, or include a form saying why they could not provide a copy. And new this year is the deadline for returning absentee ballots.
A law passed last year ended the three-day grace period for absentee ballot returns, so mailed ballots must arrive at county board offices by 7:30 pm on election day.
County boards of election provide free IDs that can be used for voting.
Local boards have been stepping up their voter outreach efforts.
The Wake County Board of Elections has scheduled its second photo ID event for this Saturday. The Durham County Board of Elections is touring county libraries this year, with appearances scheduled through July.
Coming off two impressive wins over VCU and East Carolina in the Chapel Hill Regional, the North Carolina Tar Heels head into Sunday’s matchup against Tennessee with significant momentum.
With all that being said, here is who will start on the mound for the Tar Heels on Sunday, with a lineup projection against the Volunteers in the third and final game of the regional round of the tournament.
Starting Pitcher Against Tennessee
Earlier this week, head coach Scott Forbes announced Ryan Lynch and Jason DeCaro would serve as the starters for the Tar Heels’ opening two games in the Chapel Hill Regional. With Caden Glauber contributing 4.1 innings on Saturday, compiling eight strikeouts while giving up three hits and two runs, Glauber could be less likely to start. However, I expect the true freshman to sprinkle in a few innings on Sunday against Tennessee.
- “Most of the time it becomes, ‘Okay, what do we feel like is the better matchup’ even though we feel like they match up well against anybody, and they [aren’t going to] be scared of anybody,” Forbes said. “That’s why we decided to go Lynch game one against VCU, and DeCaro will go game two against East Carolina or Tennessee.”
- “I feel like we have multiple aces,” Forbes said. “I feel like Jason DeCaro and Ryan Lynch are both Friday night guys.”
Projected Starting Lineup
Through the first two games of the regional round of the tournament, the Tar Heels are averaging 7.5 runs and 11 hits per outing. Based on what Forbes has rolled out in the opening games against VCU and East Carolina, I expect North Carolina’s batting lineup to look very similar, if not exactly the same.
While the Tar Heels coasted to victory over VCU and faced no adversity, jumping out to a 3-0 lead after the first inning en route to an 8-0 win. That was not the case on Saturday night, as the start of the game was a reciprocated experience for North Carolina, which fell behind 3-0 heading into the fourth inning.
“This team’s mature, they know we’ve played good teams all year, good midweek teams, and I’ve told them it’s about how we play, it’s not about the opponent,” Forbes said. “All of our focus has been on us, number one.”
With all that said, the Tar Heels’ projected batting lineup, in order, is Jake Schaffner, Gavin Gallaher, Owen Hull, Macon Winslow, Cooper Nicholson, Tyler Howe, Colin Hynek, Erik Paulsen, and Rom Kellis V.
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The NC Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at Saturday, May 30, 2026 results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from May 30 drawing
01-27-35-44-52, Powerball: 12, Power Play: 2
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from May 30 drawing
Day: 4-3-5, Fireball: 5
Evening: 8-3-5, Fireball: 6
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from May 30 drawing
Day: 6-6-7-3, Fireball: 6
Evening: 4-1-0-7, Fireball: 3
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 5 numbers from May 30 drawing
04-05-07-31-39
Check Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Double Play numbers from May 30 drawing
02-05-28-37-42
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from May 30 drawing
05-14-22-28-30, Bonus: 01
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All North Carolina Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $599.
For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at North Carolina Lottery Offices. By mail, send a prize claim form, your signed lottery ticket, copies of a government-issued photo ID and social security card to: North Carolina Education Lottery, P.O. Box 41606, Raleigh, NC 27629. Prize claims less than $600 do not require copies of photo ID or a social security card.
To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a prize claim form and deliver the form, along with your signed lottery ticket and government-issued photo ID and social security card to any of these locations:
- Asheville Regional Office & Claim Center: 16-G Regent Park Blvd., Asheville, NC 28806, 877-625-6886 press #1. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Greensboro Regional Office & Claim Center: 20A Oak Branch Drive, Greensboro, NC 27407, 877-625-6886 press #2. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Charlotte Regional Office & Claim Center: 5029-A West W. T. Harris Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28269-1861, 877-625-6886 press #3. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- NC Lottery Headquarters: Raleigh Claim Center & Regional Office, 2728 Capital Blvd., Suite 144, Raleigh, NC 27604, 877-625-6886 press #4. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
- Greenville Regional Office & Claim Center: 2790 Dickinson Avenue, Suite A, Greenville, NC 27834, 877-625-6886 press #5. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Wilmington Regional Office & Claim Center: 123 North Cardinal Drive Extension, Suite 140, Wilmington, NC 28405, 877-625-6886 press #6. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
Check previous winning numbers and payouts at https://nclottery.com/.
When are the North Carolina Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 11 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 10:38 p.m. daily.
- Pick 3, 4: 3:00 p.m. and 11:22 p.m. daily.
- Cash 5: 11:22 p.m. daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 11:15 p.m. daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Carolina Connect editor. You can send feedback using this form.
North Carolina has landed what is seemingly the final major piece of its frontcourt for the 2026-27 season, multiple sources have confirmed. Alexandros Samodurov announced his commitment to the Tar Heels on Saturday by way of Jonathan Givony of Draft Express.
The 6-foot-11 Greek native will bring international experience and an advanced skillset to a UNC program that was still looking to add a starting-worthy big man to its rotation. He’ll join 18-year-old 7-footer Sayon Keita, who committed to UNC a month ago, to man most of the minutes in the middle.
Now 21 years old, Samodurov plays for Panathinaikos in Greece’s top pro league, and also in EuroLeague. This is the same professional club as fellow Greece national team standout and UNC transfer commitment Neoklis Avdalas.
Samodurov earned All-Star honors with the Greece U20 National Team last summer, averaging 17.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.4 blocks at the FIBA U20 Eurobasket. He also averaged 4.9 points and 4.6 rebounds playing for the Greece Senior National Team last year.
>>> Expert Analysis: Samodurov Addition All About Stretch Big Skill Set for UNC
“The Panathinaikos forward has always been an intriguing prospect with his combination of elite size, ball-handling ability and flashes of passing, shooting and defensive playmaking,” said a FIBA report from the Eurobasket event.
Samodurov declared for the NBA Draft but the league announced on May 28 that he had withdrawn his name. He was ranked the No. 41 draft prospect in The Athletic’s Mock Draft and is No. 72 on ESPN’s Big Board.
New coach Michael Malone has been tasked over the past two months with overhauling the roster. Samodurov marks the seventh program acquisition, joining two previously committed high schoolers, and three returning players to form the 2026-27 roster.
Whether Samodurov or Keita start at center remains to be seen, but the other members of the starting lineup when UNC’s season opens in six months on Nov. 2 are expected to be Utah transfer Terrence Brown, NC State transfer Matt Able, Virginia Tech transfer Avdalas and returning forward Jarin Stevenson.
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