[State Board of Elections] State Board Certifies 2025 Municipal Election Results | Eastern NC Now

Press Release:

    Raleigh, N.C.     The State Board of Elections on Tuesday unanimously authenticated all but two of the results of the 2025 municipal elections in North Carolina.

    On Sep. 9, municipal partisan primaries were held in 3 of North Carolina's 100 counties, with over 42,000 voters casting ballots, a turnout of around 8% of the over 530,000 voters eligible to vote in these contests.

    On Oct. 7, municipal elections and nonpartisan primaries were held in 18 of North Carolina's 100 counties. Over 78,000 voters cast ballots, or a turnout of about 12% of the approximately 650,000 voters eligible to vote in these contests.

    On Nov. 4, municipal elections were held in 447 municipalities across 88 counties. More than 701,258 voters cast ballots, or a turnout of about 19.8% of the approximately 3.5 million voters eligible to vote in these contests.

    The Board voted 5-0 to authenticate the count in every ballot item in those elections, except for two Nov. 4 contests in Harrellsville. In races of both mayor and for town council there, the State Board requested that the Hertford County Board of Elections provide additional information about the findings in their resolution as to those contests.

    In municipal elections, the county boards of elections canvass the elections and issue certificates of elections to the prevailing candidates, and the State Board authenticates the count in every ballot item in the counties by determining that the votes have been counted and tabulated correctly. When a municipal contest spans across multiple counties, the State Board prepares what is known as a composite abstract for those counties so that they have an official record of the combined results in the contest before issuing the certificate of election.

    This certification came after the county boards of elections with elections in September, October, or November certified results at the county level and after a series of post-election audits by election officials verified the counts.

    View the Municipal Elections documents folder.

    "These municipal elections were carried out smoothly and successfully across North Carolina," Executive Director Sam Hayes said. "County boards, precinct officials, and State Board staff worked tirelessly to ensure that every voter had a secure and reliable voting experience. Their professionalism and dedication are central to the continued strength of our elections."

    Post-election Audits and Recounts

    After every election, elections officials conduct a series of audits to confirm the election results. In particularly close contests, county boards of elections may recount the ballots in accordance with state law.

    The findings of post-election audits are detailed in the following reports: Post-Election Audit Report for the 2025 Municipal Elections (PDF)

    The audits conducted after these elections confirmed that results tabulated by machine are accurate and help identify whether there is evidence of any fraud or other irregularities that could affect the outcome of a contest.

    "The results of these audits reaffirm what we see year after year: North Carolina's certified voting systems count ballots with a high level of accuracy," Hayes said. "Voters can be confident that the machines performed as intended and that the certified results reflect the will of the people."


   Contact: Jason Tyson
   Phone: (984) 289-9542
   Email: ncsbe.comms@ncsbe.gov