NAACP Charlotte-Mecklenburg Branch

09/27/2026

09/26/2026

In 40 days, we will either overwhelm the polls, or we will hand our future to people who never had to earn it.

09/26/2026

The Truth Anyhow!

09/26/2026

All in God's time!

In the spring of 1939, a 20-year-old cotton farmer named Jesse Lee Bond walked into the S.Y. Wilson store in Arlington, Tennessee. He bought his planting supplies. Then he did something that, in that time and place, took real nerve.

He asked for a receipt.

The store kept its own private ledger of everything Black farmers bought, borrowed, and owed. Asking for proof meant questioning the people who controlled the numbers. And in the Jim Crow South, that kind of question could cost everything.

On April 28, 1939, Jesse Lee Bond lost his life at the hands of a white mob, in broad daylight, on the town square. The official death certificate called it an accidental drowning. Almost no one believed that.

Two men were charged and tried. In January 1940, a jury acquitted them both. Jesse was buried at Grays Creek Church, and his grave never got a headstone.

For decades, his family carried the story quietly. Then it reached a young woman in Michigan.

Kyra Harris Bolden was born on July 31, 1988, in Southfield, Michigan. She studied psychology at Grand Valley State University and graduated in 2010. Law wasn't the plan yet.

Near the end of college, she spent time with her aging great-grandmother. They talked about family recipes. Then her great-grandmother told her what had really happened to Jesse.

That one conversation changed her direction. She wanted families to see a kind of justice her own family never received.

She went to law school at the University of Detroit Mercy and worked as a criminal defense attorney. She saw up close how the system treated people who couldn't afford much help.

In 2018, she won a seat in the Michigan House, representing the 35th District. She focused on criminal justice reform and domestic violence prevention.

During that first campaign, a critic mocked her for feeling "emboldened" to run at all. She didn't forget the word. Years later, she named her first child Emerson, so the nickname could be "Em Bolden."

In 2022, she ran statewide for the Michigan Supreme Court. In August, she gave birth to her daughter, and six days later she accepted her party's nomination. Caring for a baby while serving as a lawmaker and campaigning across the state, she later called that season pure chaos. That November, she finished third behind two sitting justices.

She lost. But on November 22, 2022, just two weeks later, Governor Gretchen Whitmer appointed her to fill the seat left by retiring Justice Bridget Mary McCormack.

On January 1, 2023, she was sworn in at 34. She became the first Black woman to serve on the Michigan Supreme Court, and the youngest justice in its history. It had been 84 years since Jesse walked into that store.

Her mother, Cheryl Harris, could barely talk about it without tearing up. Then, on November 5, 2024, voters had their say. Bolden won 61.5% of the vote, more than 2.59 million ballots, keeping her seat through January 1, 2029.

She sums up her family's path in one line: they went from a lynching to law school, and from injustice to Justice with a capital J.

Back in Tennessee, Jesse's story is still moving too. In February 2026, the National Park Service opened public comments on a study of lynching sites around Memphis, including the Arlington square where Jesse was killed, to evaluate whether they should become part of the National Park System. His family is still working to give his memory a permanent marker.

Jesse asked for a piece of paper that proved the numbers were fair. Today, his great-granddaughter reads the records, weighs the evidence, and decides whether the system got it right. The receipt he asked for in 1939 finally has someone checking the math.

Sources: Associated Press, Equal Justice Initiative, Lynching Sites Project of Memphis, National Park Service.

09/26/2026

Join the fight for our democracy!
Volunteer to Canvass. Knock on our neighbors doors and give them non partisan voter guides. Know the candidates!

09/25/2026

Elections Matter!

09/24/2026

Join the fight for our democracy!

09/02/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1DHCxNPSAS/

08/31/2026

Charlotte- Mecklenburg...Let's Get Out and Vote!!!
You need a ride, we got you!
The NAACP Charlotte-Mecklenburg Branch will provide rides to the polls throughout early voting.

Early Voting Sites and Hours for 11/3/26 General (Oct 15th - Oct 31th)

Site Address Hours
WEST – Allegra Westbrooks Regional Library
2412 BEATTIES FORD RD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28216
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

PINEVILLE – Belle Johnston Community Center
1000 JOHNSTON DR
PINEVILLE, NC 28134
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

FREEMOREWEST – Bette Rea Thomas Rec Center
2921 TUCKASEEGEE RD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28208
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

CORNELIUS Town Hall
21445 CATAWBA AVE
CORNELIUS, NC 28031
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

HUNTERSVILLE – CPCC Merancas Campus
11930 VERHOEFF DR
HUNTERSVILLE, NC 28078
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

EASTWAY Regional Rec Center
3150 EASTWAY PARK DR
CHARLOTTE, NC 28213
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

UNIVERSITY - Former University City Library
301 E WT HARRIS BLVD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28262
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

UPTOWN – Hal Marshall Annex
618 N COLLEGE ST
CHARLOTTE, NC 28202
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

EAST – Hickory Grove Library
5935 HICKORY GROVE RD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28215
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

NORTHWEST – Hornets Nest Pavilion
6301 BEATTIES FORD RD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28216
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

EAST –Independence Regional Library
6000 CONFERENCE DR
CHARLOTTE, NC 28212
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

NORTH – Mallard Creek Rec Center
2530 JOHNSTON OEHLER RD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28269
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

SOUTH – Marion Diehl Rec Center
2219 TYVOLA RD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28210
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

MATTHEWS Fire and EMS Station # 3
3017 MATTHEWS-MINT HILL RD
MATTHEWS, NC 28105
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

MATTHEWS Library
230 MATTHEWS STATION ST
MATTHEWS, NC 28105
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

MINT HILL Masonic Lodge
10224 LAWYERS RD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28227
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

NORTH County Regional Library
16500 HOLLY CREST LN
HUNTERSVILLE, NC 28078
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

BALLANTYNE – Rea Village Shopping Center
11508 PROVIDENCE RD # M
CHARLOTTE, NC 28277
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

SOUTH County Regional Library
5801 REA RD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28277
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

SOUTHPARK Regional Library
7015 CARNEGIE BLVD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28211
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

DILWORTH –St Luke's Lutheran Church
3200 PARK RD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28209
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

STEELE CREEK Masonic Lodge
13611 STEELE CREEK RD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28273
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

MT. ISLAND – The Bradshaw Center at Hillcrest
8501 BELLHAVEN BLVD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28214
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

EAST – The Park Expo and Conference Center
800 BRIAR CREEK RD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28205
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

WEST Boulevard Library
2157 WEST BLVD
CHARLOTTE, NC 28208
Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 7:30pm, Sat: 8:00am - 3:00pm, Sun: 1:00pm - 5:00pm

Voter Resources
Check your Election Day Precinct

Request a Mail-In Ballot Online

Track your Mail in Ballot

View your Sample Ballot for the 2026 Primary Election

Offices on the Ballot for 2026 General Election

NCSBE 2026 Judicial Voter Guide

Early Voting Sites for 11/3/2026

Future Elections
2027 Municipal Elections
(City, Small Town)

Primary Election (City of Charlotte): Tuesday, September 14th, 2027

2nd Primary & Possible Town of Matthews Primary: Tuesday, October 5th, 2027

General Election: Tuesday, November 2nd,