Voter turnout in Tuesday’s primary increased from previous elections in Columbus and Scotland counties, likely spurred by races for sheriff.
Robeson and Bladen counties, meanwhile, saw dips in turnout, according to unofficial vote counts from the North Carolina State Board of Elections.
Compared to the most recent non-presidential primary election in 2022, Columbus County saw a 3 percentage point increase in voter turnout, with 20% of eligible voters casting ballots. The increase was likely motivated by a contentious race in the Republican primary for sheriff.
Scotland County saw a 6-point bump from the 2022 primary, with 22% of eligible voters heading to the polls. Scotland County Republican voters had several competitive primaries, including the race for sheriff and the N.C. House District 48 seat.
The two counties followed a statewide trend of increased voter turnout. Unofficial results show more than 1.5 million North Carolina voters cast ballots in the 2026 primary, up 5% from 2022.
Bladen County had the highest turnout in the Border Belt, with 22.5% of eligible voters casting ballots. That surpassed the statewide average of 19.6%. The turnout in Bladen County, however, was down by about 2 percentage points from the 2022 primary. Voters there chose new school board members and candidates for sheriff.
Robeson County had the lowest voter turnout in the state on Tuesday at 9%, a decrease of nearly 6 percentage points from 2022 and a loss of more than 3,600 voters. The county has consistently struggled with low turnout. The primary there featured contested races for several county commissioners’ seats.
Early-voting turnout increased across North Carolina this year by 25.4% compared to the 2022 primary. A total of 701,140 voters cast ballots during the early voting period.
Three of the Border Belt counties—Bladen, Columbus, and Scotland—followed this trend.
Scotland County saw the largest increase with a 72% jump in early votes compared to the 2022 primary. GOP early ballots quadrupled from 2022 to 2026. Democratic early ballots also rose modestly.
“In some counties, early voting participation even surpassed the 2024 primary levels, demonstrating strong engagement from North Carolina voters,” Sam Hayes, executive director of the State Board of Elections, said in a statement.
The Columbus County Community Foundation awarded the Border Belt Independent a $5,000 grant to fund Data Point, a concise feature that focuses on numbers and statistics highlighting an issue or trend in the Border Belt. The Columbus County Community Foundation is a nonprofit that connects people with causes and organizations they care about. It is part of the North Carolina Community Foundation network.