North Carolina Amendment (photo ID): Require photo ID for all voters, including mail-in
What it does. North Carolina’s Constitution, since a 2018 vote, requires voters who vote in person to present photo identification. State law also requires absentee voters to submit a copy of their photo ID or an affidavit of an exception. Session Law 2024-58 puts a different question to voters: whether to amend the Constitution so that all voters, however they vote, must present photo identification. The legislature would still set by law what counts as acceptable ID and any exceptions. If approved, the amendment takes effect when the State Board of Elections certifies the result. [1] [2] [3] [4]
Official ballot question. Constitutional amendment to require all voters, not just those presenting to vote in person, to present photo identification before voting. [1] [2] [3]
If you vote yes
A vote FOR would amend the North Carolina Constitution to require photographic identification for voters in all instances in North Carolina elections, not only those voting in person. [1] [2] [3]
If you vote no
A vote AGAINST would leave the Constitution as it is, requiring photo identification only for voters presenting to vote in person. The existing state law on absentee ID would remain ordinary law that the legislature can change. [1] [2] [3]
What it would cost
The nonpartisan legislative summary of the amendment bill (S.L. 2024-58) does not include a cost estimate, and we did not find another official fiscal note for this amendment. [3]
Both sides
Strongest case for
State Sen. Warren Daniel (R) says, “Voter ID is a commonsense security measure that needs to apply equally to all voters. As voting has evolved over the years, protecting against fraud needs to as well. We shouldn’t treat one form of voting differently, and our constitution should reflect that.” [4]
Rep. Mike Schietzelt (R-Wake) told WUNC News the amendment increases security, especially as mail-in voting has grown since the COVID-19 pandemic: “All of your election law policy is trying to strike a balance between ensuring that every person who is eligible to vote has an opportunity to vote while also limiting opportunities for other people to interfere in the election.” [5]
WFAE reports that Republican lawmakers say the constitutional change is needed to prevent courts and future lawmakers from changing the rules. The conservative John Locke Foundation says that although the voter experience will not change, “it is a meaningful change to the state constitution.” [5]
Strongest case against
Katelin Kaiser, policy director of Democracy North Carolina, says, “This is another attempt to disenfranchise voters by mail, and it is working. Legislative leadership has made it more difficult for students, older people, and people who are disabled to vote by mail in North Carolina.” [4]
The Sierra Club of North Carolina says passage “would not change current voting requirements at all. But it would make a hugely significant change, stripping future state legislatures of the power to pass new laws to change those requirements.” Rep. Pricey Harrison (D-Guilford) says, “It’s difficult to undo it once it’s in the constitution.” [4] [5]
Carolina Forward, a progressive nonprofit, asks “whether this additional constitutional restriction is necessary when requirements already exist in state law and whether election rules that may need to evolve belong in the Constitution.” [5]
What neither side is saying
Context that bears on what this measure does or who it affects but that the arguments above do not address. These are sourced facts, not arguments for or against the measure.
- Exceptions and free ID stay in state law. The amendment text says the General Assembly “shall enact general laws governing the requirements of such photographic identification, which may include exceptions.” The nonpartisan legislative analysis says the exceptions enacted so far are religious objections, reasonable impediments, and natural disasters. WFAE reports that a voter who cannot show acceptable photo ID can fill out an ID Exception Form, and that voters can get a free photo ID from a county board of elections. [2] [3] [5]
- It does not settle the court challenge. WFAE reports that the North Carolina NAACP is appealing a lawsuit it lost earlier this year that challenged the state’s voter photo ID law as discriminatory. Brooks Fuller of Common Cause North Carolina told WFAE that the status of that case should remain unchanged if the amendment passes. [5]
Editorial context, not the opinion of We Elect. Each point is a fact we found in a source we opened and read; where sources disagree or data are missing, we say so. How we choose these.
Follow the money
Contributions reported by committees registered to support or oppose Amendment (photo ID). Major donors are those who gave $100,000 or more; where fewer than three did, up to five of the largest listed donors giving $5,000 or more are shown.
Supporting (Yes)
Total raised —
No committee registered.
Opposing (No)
Total raised $59,306
Committee
- NC By the People $59,306
At least one of these committees also campaigns on North Carolina Amendment (income tax cap), North Carolina Amendment (property tax limit), so its money cannot be split by measure.
Major donors
No major donors reported.
Reported contributions through Oct. 2, 2026, as compiled by Ballotpedia from state filings; the source lists each side’s top donors, not every donor. Figures are reported contributions and may be updated as new reports are filed. Amounts are rounded to the nearest dollar. Official filings: North Carolina State Board of Elections, campaign finance.
Sources
- Official Summary Explanation of 2026 Constitutional Amendments (press release; copy published by the Beaufort County Board of Elections) — North Carolina Legislative Services Officer (Official summary explanation, 2026-08-20)
- Session Law 2024-58 (Senate Bill 921), text of the amendment — North Carolina General Assembly (Official legislative text, 2024-12-13)
- Bill summary and analysis of S.L. 2024-58 (Senate Bill 921) — North Carolina General Assembly Legislative Analysis Division (Official nonpartisan legislative analysis, 2024-12-20)
- North Carolina Require Voter Identification Amendment (2026) — Ballotpedia (Reference (quotes supporters and opponents), accessed 2026-10-28)
- Should the requirement for voter identification be in North Carolina’s Constitution? — WFAE 90.7 (Charlotte public radio) (News report, 2026-10-02)
Editorial summary of arguments made by others, not the opinion of We Elect. Last reviewed 2026-10-28. How we write both sides.
We Elect is a Brunner Creative site. Editorial summary of arguments made by others, not the opinion of We Elect. Each side is written to be the strongest case its supporters would recognize, and every claim is tied to a source we opened and read.