North Triangle News

The State Board of Elections continues to investigate a voter-registration scam targeting North Carolina residents, according to the agency. 

The elections board said in mid-March that state residents were receiving "unsolicited text messages regarding their voter registration status or asking them to register to vote." 

The agency warned that residents should not click the links or download any files associated with the texts. The texts reportedly came from the nonprofit Vote.org, the elections board, but the organization has said they are not involved. 

"Text messages received in the last week were not that of Vote.org," the nonprofit said in a release the state elections board provided. "We will continue to protect your vote, stay in communication with the North Carolina State Board of Elections and encourage voters to reference state registration websites and our official platforms at Vote.org. All communications received from Vote.org are marked as being such and can be found on official platforms."

The board of elections continues its investigation and said it would notify state and federal departments. 

“We know these texts can be confusing to voters, and we take this situation very seriously,” Karen Brinson Bell, State Board of Elections executive, said in an email release. “We urge all North Carolinians to get information about voting and voter registration from trusted, reliable sources, including your state and county boards of elections.”