In the state of North Carolina it is against the law to take photos inside election polling centers and one-stop sites. Commissioner Michael Cogdell is alleged to have taken photos inside the voting location in Elizabethtown on Wednesday this week, according to an eye witness wishing to remain anonymous to the public.
The witness identified Cogdell as he held his phone up in polling site during operating hours. The witness said the commissioner’s camera was on and he then began zooming in and taking photos of the area with his camera phone.
The Election Judge on site, Christopher Williams, was immediately notified of Cogdell’s actions inside the voting center. Williams said he contacted the Bladen County Board of Elections on Wednesday to report the incident.
As soon as the photos were taken, Cogdell was seen showing his phone to Bladen Improvement Political Action Committee leader, Mr. Horace Munn, and a reporter from WECT (a television news station) out side of the polling center, according to witnesses.
Bladen County Board of Elections Director, Cynthia Shaw, confirmed she did receive a complaint about the criminal actions of taking photos inside the voting center. Shaw did say she has not seen the photo or photos in question herself, but did hear photos were taken inside the polling site.
The State Board of Elections and local law enforcement have also been notified of the situation according to officials.
In NC, state law expressly prohibits photography inside the polling place. NC General Statute 163-166.3 (b) reads, “Photographing Voters Prohibited. – No person shall photograph, videotape, or otherwise record the image of any voter within the voting enclosure, except with the permission of both the voter and the chief judge of the precinct. If the voter is a candidate, only the permission of the voter is required. This subsection shall also apply to one-stop sites under G.S. 163-227.2.
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