A federal judge ruled on Sunday against efforts to open early voting sites at three university campuses across North Carolina ahead of the state’s primary election. In January, a coalition of students had sued the state after officials rejected their efforts to open early voting sites on campus.

Students have been advocating for early voting sites

Students from Western Carolina University, University of North Carolina Greensboro and North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (the country’s largest HBCU) sued the State Board of Elections in January — alleging that the refusal to open early voting sites was in violation of the Constitution. They said the board ignored their demands and “brushed aside urgent warnings that their decisions would disproportionately burden young and Black voters and denigrated students who advocated for their rights,” according to the News & Observer.

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Students said that without early voting being made available, they will have to travel off-campus to vote, which will cost them money and time. They asked officials to open early voting sites ahead of North Carolina’s primary election on March 3.

After their demands were rejected by the State Board of Elections in January, NC A&T State University students held a protest to push for the opening of early voting sites on campus. Board Chair Francis De Luca reportedly threatened to call the police on them.

The three universities have previously hosted early voting sites in recent elections. Western Carolina University has hosted early voting sites regularly since 2016, while UNC Greensboro and NC A&T State University have offered sites in recent presidential elections but not for midterm elections, according to the Associated Press. Early voting is offered at other university campuses across the state with same-day registration made available on site.

Why did a judge rule against the students’ lawsuit?

Federal judge William Osteen Jr., who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, ruled that it would be impossible to force universities to open early voting sites on such short notice.

“That the universities hosted early voting sites in prior elections … is one thing,” Osteen wrote, according to The News & Observer. “Whether they are able or willing to do so now, only days away from the state of the early voting period, is another.”

He also wrote that the plaintiffs were not likely to succeed with their lawsuit because “this court does not find the burdens on plaintiffs to be severe.” The judge’s ruling can still be appealed.

Lawyers representing the State Board of Elections wrote that there are no requirements to retain voting sites used in previous elections. They added that deciding whether to open a site was based on circumstances such as cost, geographic location, parking access and previous turnout.

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