Campus Echo StaffSeveral high-profile races are on the primary ballot in Durham today. N.C. Central University students and Durham residents have until 7:30 p.m. to get in line to cast their ballots.
One of the most watched and heavily talked about races in the state is for the open U.S. Senate seat, which became vacant after Sen. Thom Tillis announced his retirement.
Former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper is among the six Democratic candidates seeking election. Mike Whatley, former Chairman of the Republican National Committee, and Michelle Morrow, a 2024 North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction candidate, are some of the most notable names among the six candidates competing for the Republican ticket.
In North Carolina’s 4th congressional district, which includes NCCU, current Democratic U.S. Rep. Valerie Foushee faces Durham County Commissioner Nida Allam. This race is a rematch between the candidates, following Allam’s nine-point loss to Foushee in 2022 for a seat in the U.S. House.
In Durham, former City Council member DeDreana Freeman, who lost her re-election bid in 2025, is challenging freshman state Sen. Sophia Chitlik.
One hundred and eighty ballots were cast after NCCU students gathered for the university’s “SOAR To The Polls” event on Feb. 25, where students marched from the New Student Center to the Turner Law building during early voting. The voter turnout more than doubled from the day before the campus event.
“It is important to celebrate civic engagement and put in front of students to encourage them to vote instead of making them think of it as a chore,” said Savion Jarvis, a junior political science student and member of the Campus Vote Project.
At the end of early voting on Feb. 28, 33,160 Durham County residents cast their ballots during the 2026 primary, just 14% of the registered voters participating during the early voting period.
North Carolina voters are required to present an acceptable form of photo identification, such as driver’s license, passport or an approved student ID. Those without an acceptable form of photo ID can still vote, by completing an ID exception form and casting a provisional ballot.
LaTrice Washington, a political science professor at NCCU, said preparation is key for first-time and student voters.
“Do some research. Get a sense of who’s on the ballot. Try to find issues that you identify with them. I say ‘shop for a candidate,’” Washington said.
Washington said many students focus primarily on the presidential elections and overlook the importance of primaries and state-level races.
“All politics are local,” Washington said. “While a lot of times people like to focus on what’s happening in D.C., sometimes people lose sight that [the] leaders that you’re electing closest to you are those that you can get in their presence and that ultimately could bring about some change that becomes a lot more immediate and visible in your community.”
She also encouraged students to understand how policies shaped at the state and federal levels could directly affect their lives.
“Depending on leadership and what their stands become we could see improvements, we’ve had situations where people who are not campus people end up on campus and commit crimes against students, and I think everybody, one central thing that people want is safety and protection.
Students who participated said the events like this are important to promote civic engagement and encourage students to vote, as NCCU’s voting precinct have notoriously low voter turnout
“I think it is very important to know what is going on, and to be involved in civic engagement, I think it’s more important than the presidential elections,” said a junior political science student Janika Bunch, a member of the HBCU Student Action Alliance.
Voters can check their voter registration on the North Carolina Board of Elections website. This website will identify whether the voter registration is active or not and polling location.
This story was written by Kai Jones.
