Buncombe County Audit: Senate Ballots Under Hand Count

Buncombe County election officials began hand-counting 100 percent of sampled U.S. Senate race ballots on Monday, Nov. 9, to verify machine totals. The board launched this specific audit to assess the accuracy of voting equipment for that single contest. The process is currently underway at the county elections office.

Bipartisan teams are performing the manual count using a randomly selected sample of ballots. They compare these hand counts directly against the totals recorded by voting machines. This audit serves as a check on machine accuracy rather than a full recount of every ballot across all races. If the hand count and machine total do not match, county rules require officials to report the difference and explain the discrepancy.

The event is open to the public and started at 10 a.m. Monday. The audit is one component of the broader post-election canvass process. During this phase, election workers also review provisional ballots cast during the election to determine voter eligibility. These steps occur before results become official.

Certification of results happens only after these reviews are complete. Each county board must certify its results during scheduled meetings. In Buncombe County, the canvass meeting is set for Friday, Nov. 13, at 11 a.m. The meeting is public, and it follows the standard 10-day window after Election Day.