WATAUGA COUNTY

WATAUGA COUNTY ELECTION DAY POLLING PLACE BUFFER ZONES  
MARCH 3, 2026 PRIMARY

Bald Mountain Precinct: Todd Fire Department – 50 feet from side door entrance.

Beaver Dam Precinct: Beaver Dam Fire Department - 50 feet from back door entrance.

Blowing Rock: Blowing Rock American Legion Building – 50 feet from front door.

Blue Ridge Precinct: Laurel Fork Baptist Church- Campaigning 100 feet from Fellowship Hall door, signs 200 feet from Fellowship Hall door (per agreement).

Boone 1 Precinct: Watauga County Admin Building- 50 feet from King Street entrance.

Boone 2 Precinct: Plemmons Student Union-50 feet from building entrance by Blue Ridge Ballroom and adjacent hallways to the Blue Ridge Ballroom.

Brushy Fork Precinct: Caldwell Community College 460 Building - 50 feet from entry door

Boone 3 Precinct: Agricultural Conference Center- 50 feet from entry door.

Cove Creek Precinct: Zionville Fire Station #2 – 50 feet from front door.

Elk Precinct:  Stewart Simmons Fire Department -50 feet from front door.

Laurel Creek Precinct:  Cove Creek Fired Department – 50 feet from last door on the left

Meat Camp Precinct: Meat Camp Fire Department – 25 feet from back door.

New River 1 Precinct: Boone Town Hall Council Chambers- 50 feet from front door.

New River 2 Precinct: Three Forks Baptist Association- 25 feet from side door.

New River 3 Precinct: Watauga Recreation Center- 50 feet from entry door

North Fork Precinct: Edgar Eller’s Garage – 50 feet from entry door to voting enclosure.

Shawneehaw Precinct: Matney Community Center - 50 feet from entry door to Community Center.

Stony Fork Precinct: Deep Gap Fire Department – 50 Feet from rear exit door.

Watauga Precinct: Foscoe Christian Church – 50 feet from front door.

Beech Mountain Precinct: Buckeye Recreation Center – 50 feet from front door.

EARLY VOTING SITES

Watauga County Admin Building- 50 feet from King Street entrance

Blowing Rock American Legion Bldg – 50 feet from front door

Plemmons Student Union-50 feet from building entrance by Blue Ridge Ballroom and adjacent hallways.

Deep Gap Fire Department – 50 Feet from rear entry door

Meat Camp Fire Department – 25 feet from back door.

Western Watauga Community Center – 25 feet from front door

§ 163A-1134.  Limitation on activity in the voting place and in a buffer zone around it.

(a)        Buffer Zone. - No person or group of persons shall hinder access, harass others, distribute campaign literature, place political advertising, solicit votes, or otherwise engage in election-related activity in the voting place or in a buffer zone which shall be prescribed by the county board of elections around the voting place. In determining the dimensions of that buffer zone for each voting place, the county board of elections shall, where practical, set the limit at 50 feet from the door of entrance to the voting place, measured when that door is closed, but in no event shall it set the limit at more than 50 feet or at less than 25 feet.

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TO VIEW THE NOTICE OF PRIMARY ELECTION 2026 ELECTION, CLICK HERE

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TO VIEW THE 2026 PRIMARY UNIFORMED AND OVERSEAS CIVILIAN VOTERS NOTICE, CLICK HERE

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 The Watauga County Board of Elections meets the second Tuesday of each month at 5:00 pm in the County Administration Building located at 814 W. King Street, Boone. The public is encouraged to attend.

Check the county calendar for upcoming Board of Elections meetings :

Watauga County, NC 

Click on the calendar event to see more details.

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 Watauga County has new County Commissioner Districts and a new method of election for them. North Carolina Session Law 2023-147 was passed on October 25, 2023. As a result, County Commissioners must live in the district for which they seek office as before; however, now voters can only vote for the one Commissioner that represents their district. 

The districts have been realigned to contain roughly the same population in each district. Each candidate is elected to a four-year term. Commissioner Districts 3, 4, and 5 were up for election in 2024. Commissioner Districts 1 and 2 are up for election in 2026. Candidate filing opens at Noon on December 1st, 2025, and closes at Noon on December 19th.

District 1 is comprised of precincts Boone 1, Boone 2, Boone 3, and part of Brush Fork.

District 2 is comprised of precincts New River 1, New River 3, and part of New River 2.

District 3 is comprised of precincts Beaver Dam, Laurel Creek, Shawneehaw, Watauga, Beech Mountain, and part of Brush Fork.

District 4 is comprised of precincts Bald Mountain, Cove Creek, Meat Camp, North Fork, part of Brushy Fork, and part of New River 2.

District 5 is comprised of precincts Blowing Rock, Blue Ridge, Elk, and Stony Fork.

 

NEW BOARD OF EDUCATION DISTRICTS

North Carolina Session Law 2024-13 created 5 Board of Education districts aligned with the County Commissioner districts. It also established four-year terms for all members. The districts up for election in 2026 are District 1 and District 4. Filing for Districts 1 & 4 opens at Noon on December 1, 2025 and closes at Noon on December 19, 2025. The filing fee is $45.

 

County Commissioner / Board of Education District Map – Click Here
Map of District 1 - Click here
Map of District 2 - Click here
Map of District 3 - Click here
Map of District 4 - Click here
Map of District 5 - Click here

 

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The mission of the Watauga County Board of Elections is to provide the highest level of professional standards to ensure accurate, honest, and fair elections through accountability and integrity and to provide all citizens our services in the most efficient, effective, and timely manner.

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