As North Carolinians continue to recover from the devastating effects of Hurricane Helene, early voting began Thursday in the critical swing state.

State election officials expect the majority of North Carolina voters to cast their ballots in person over the next two weeks. Early voting ends November 2nd.

More than 400 early voting sites are operational across the state’s 100 counties.

“Having nearly all early voting locations open after such a devastating storm is an accomplishment that all North Carolinians should be proud of,” Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, said Tuesday.

Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris remain tied in the critical swing state, with Trump holding a 0.4% lead over Harris in the state polling average of 538.

Both candidates have visited North Carolina since the remnants of Hurricane Helene brought deadly flooding to the state, leaving 95 people dead and 92 still missing. Trump has repeatedly made false claims about the federal response to the disaster, claiming that emergency aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency was being withdrawn from the state because of undocumented immigrants.

“They were hit by a very bad hurricane, particularly North Carolina and parts of Georgia. But North Carolina really took a hit. I’ll tell you what: These people should never vote for a Democrat because they withheld aid,” Trump said during an interview last week.

Visiting a church in Greenville, North Carolina, on Sunday, Harris refrained from mentioning Trump by name while criticizing the spread of disinformation about the relief effort in the state.

“Right now, our fellow Americans are experiencing some of the most difficult moments in their lives,” Harris said. “But instead of giving hope, there are those who turn people’s tragedies and worries into grief and hatred, and one might wonder why, and I think, to be honest, the motives are unfortunately quite transparent: to gain some advantage to play politics with other people’s grief.

As recovery efforts continue, election officials expressed optimism about the state’s plans for early voting. In the 25 western counties listed in the federal disaster declaration, 76 early voting sites have been confirmed — four fewer than originally planned.

“We lost few despite the extensive damage, power, water, internet and phone service outages and road washouts across the region,” Brinson Bell said.

In past presidential elections, the majority of the state’s voters have cast their ballots using early in-person voting, with 65% using that method in 2020 and 62% in 2016. Election officials expect a similar share of voters to vote early in person. and have taken a number of measures to improve voting access in the counties most affected by Helene.

Voters in affected counties can drop off their mail-in ballot at any early voting location across the state, and the state plans to deploy “bipartisan support teams” to assist with mail-in voting at shelters.

This will also be the first presidential election in which voters will be required to show photo ID to vote, after lawsuits delayed implementation of the state’s controversial voter ID law following its passage in 2018. Voters may present a driver’s license, student ID, or passport to vote, but exceptions are permitted in the event of natural disasters.

The only county offering fewer early voting sites is the hardest-hit Buncombe County, whose officials opted to reduce the number of sites from 14 to 10 due to ongoing emergency relief efforts.

“Our office has been preparing for the 2024 election for years, but we certainly did not expect this,” said Corinne Duncan, Buncombe County Election Services Director.