Ron Grindstaff, right, comforts his wife, Marie, as they remove belongings from their home in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene on Sept. 30, 2024 in Old Fort, North Carolina. (Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images)
With so many voters displaced after Helene in the swing state of North Carolina, election officials are receiving guidance from a state that has done this many times before— Louisiana.
Election Commissioner Sherri Wharton-Hadskey said Louisiana has had to implement more emergency voting procedures than any other state following disastrous storms.
When there’s a natural disaster and voters are displaced, officials will distribute voting information to shelters and other places that provide emergency assistance that shows residents how to take part in the election process.
“Right after Katrina, we saw elderly people in shelters who were taken out of their homes in pajamas. They did not have their medicine, they did not have their eyeglasses and things like that,” she said. “Being able to move quickly and understand what the needs are to conduct the election is so critical in an emergency circumstance.”