The State Board of Elections approved Talley Student Union to be a one-stop voting site for the upcoming midterm elections Sunday night. The decision came after Wake County representatives were unable to come to a consensus about satellite sites, where voters can cast their ballots before election day, and were split along party lines during the meeting in July, after failing to agree about the Talley voting site.

In the plan endorsed by Greg Flynn and Erica Porter, Democratic members of the Wake County Board of Elections, there were nine satellite sites (including Talley) that included voting on the second Sunday (Oct. 28). In addition, for each weekend day there would be an additional hour of voting and on the last Sunday, two additional hours.

The plan endorsed by Eddie Woodhouse and Keith Weatherly, Republican members of the Wake County Board of Elections, included nine sites that were previously used in the 2014 general election and were cognizant of growing populations so that the sites were safe and convenient, but at minimal additional cost to taxpayers.

“We believe this plan avoids unnecessary cost while offering a thoughtful array of nine convenient and safe sites covering all areas of Wake County with locations and times convenient to all voters,” Weatherly said. “It is obvious in our deliberation that the Wake County Board, as you already know, our disagreement was over the one site and that’s the primary reason we could not reach a unanimous decision on early voting. That site is the Talley Student Center at NC State University campus.”

Woodhouse claimed that the Talley Student Union site had never been used before, however it was a voting site in the 2012 general election, before its reconstruction, where over 16,000 individuals cast early voting ballots.

The board members’ main point of contention was the access the public would have to the site with its gates on Dan Allen Drive and other spots throughout campus. However, it will remain accessible through Pullen Road and the according to the plan endorsed by the Democrats on the board, Talley is free to the public through Wolfline bus routes that stop at Talley and one regular capillary bus route. The university has also allotted 36 free parking spaces, including four accessible spaces for early voting itself.

Press Millen, an attorney representing and advising Democratic members of the county board said that it is  that it important to take care of the needs of young voters right and ability to vote.

“In 2016, at an NC State site, 44 percent of the voters fell into the age 18-25 year old demographic group,” Millen said. “Young voters are specifically singled out for constitutional voting rights, protections under the 26th Amendment which emphasizes the need to take care of those voters’ right to vote and to see that it’s not impeded.”

Flynn said that NC State has the highest population density in Wake County, making it the size of a small town that warrants its own early voting site.

“There are over 40,000 students, faculty and staff on-site on weekdays on main campus and centennial campus every working day,” Flynn said. “… This doesn’t even include private sector, non-profit employees on Centennial Campus. If NC State campus was a town, it would be slightly smaller than Apex and larger than Wake Forest which both have early voting sites.”

In a 5-4 decision, the State Board of Elections approved Talley as an early voting site and the university will move forward with plans in preparation for one-stop voting. Technician will provide updates as this story continues to develop.