CHARLOTTE, N.C. ( QUEEN CITY NEWS ) — Republican and Democrat challengers have continued to spend millions in the state of North Carolina to target a base that could decide who wins the state and potentially the presidency in 2024.
Their aim has targeted swing voters, or those “unaffiliated” with a particular party.
Early numbers on absentee ballot requests indicated that “unaffiliated” voters now make up a larger number of absentee ballots, outnumbering Republicans and Democrats.
For reference, Democrats and Republicans were nearly tied with absentee ballot requests in 2016, far ahead of unaffiliated voters.
In 2020, Democrats outnumbered Republicans by more than double, while unaffiliated requests were just more than half of Democrat numbers.
2024-09-20-Daily-Absentee-Request-Report-2024-General Download
UNC Charlotte Professor Dr. Eric Heberlig said he was shocked to see the numbers.
He said, “I think it is surprising that Independents are requesting more absentee ballots than Republicans or Democrats.”