The North Carolina State Board of Elections' voter registration search tool is back online after it went went out days before elections in some cities and towns.
When searching for voter records, an error appeared with a message saying “The web function you were interacting with has encountered an error,” with a message saying to send an email to the SBOE’s help page for assistance.
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The North Carolina Democratic Party said on X that it heard the tool was down in 94 of the state’s 100 counties, adding that it is “impacting poll workers’ ability to quickly identify and register votes.”
The North Carolina Republican Party also added that the voter registration statistics tool also experienced
WRAL News has reached out to the State Board of Elections, which said the issue would not affect people's ability to vote. The Board of Elections had the page restored Saturday night.
Election day is on Tuesday, Nov. 4, for general elections and runoffs for various municipalities, including Durham and Fayetteville.
Anderson Clayton, chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party, quickly blamed Republicans for the issue.
"When Dave Boliek first took over the Board of Elections he removed career election professionals to fill his leadership with inexperienced, partisan appointees," Clayton, in a statement provided to WRAL News.
"Now, on the last day of early voting before our municipal elections, the NCSBE Voter Search tool went down in 94 out of 100 counties."
Boliek, a Republican, was given authority over the elections board after Republican state lawmakers changed state law following the 2024 elections to shift control of elections from the governor to the auditor. The change came days after Democrat Josh Stein won the race for governor and Boliek won the race for state auditor.
"It’s clear that Republicans were wrong when they said that making Boliek the only State Auditor in the country that controls elections would not impact voting or the quality of our systems, " Clayton said.
Randy Brechbiel with the State Auditor's Office criticized Clayton's statements, saying they eroded public trust.
"This is why voters distrust the elections system," Brechbiel said. "Paid actors rush to spread misinformation without regard for the truth or even their own credibility."
Matt Mercer, a spokesperson for the NCGOP said the statement from Democrats ammounced to "trying to score cheap political points," adding that Boliek has spent significant time since being elected addressing issues with the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles.
Patrick Gannon, a spokesperson with the North Carolina State Board of Elections, added that the board's executive director, Sam Hayes, has been working to fix the election software, which he clams was neglected by the previous director and the then Democratic majority.
"Again, there has been no interruption in voting operations," Gannon said.