{"data":{"id":"us-nc/n.c.-gen.-stat.-163-258.17","jurisdiction":"us-nc","citation":"N.C. Gen. Stat. § 163-258.17","heading":"Prohibition of nonessential requirements.","body":"(a)\tIf a voter's mistake or omission in the completion of a document under this Article does not prevent determining whether a covered voter is eligible to vote, the mistake or omission does not invalidate the document. Failure to satisfy a nonessential requirement, such as using paper or envelopes of a specified size or weight, does not invalidate a document submitted under this Article. In any write-in ballot authorized by this Article or in any vote for a write-in candidate on a regular ballot, if the intention of the voter is discernable under this State's uniform definition of what constitutes a vote, as required by the Help America Vote Act, 42 U.S.C. § 15481(a)(6), an abbreviation, misspelling, or other minor variation in the form of the name of a candidate or a political party shall be accepted as a valid vote.\n(b)\tAn authentication, other than the declaration specified in G.S. 163-258.13 or the declaration on the federal postcard application and federal write-in absentee ballot, is not required for execution of a document under this Article. The declaration and any information in the declaration may be compared against information on file to ascertain the validity of the document. (2011-182, s. 1; 2017-6, s. 3; 2018-146, s. 3.1(a), (b).)","path":["Chapter 163. Elections and Election Laws.","SUBCHAPTER VII. ABSENTEE VOTING.","Article 21A. Uniform Military and Overseas Voters Act.","Part 1. Uniform Military and Overseas Voters Act."],"source_url":"https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_163/GS_163-258.17.html","current_through":"S.L. 2026-30","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-08-27T18:26:22Z","sha256":"01de4049c159cfbe478a6263dedc39976e612f0e7adb03e1cdb8e72534e463a3","source_id":"us-nc","stale":false,"prev":"us-nc/n.c.-gen.-stat.-163-258.16","next":"us-nc/n.c.-gen.-stat.-163-258.18"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}