The John M. Brown Community Center took 26,556 ballots through Friday, the most of Wake's 18 sites. Early voting ends at 3 p.m. Saturday; polls open 6:30 a.m. Tuesday.

More people have voted early at the John M. Brown Community Center in Apex than at any other site in Wake County. The center, at 53 Hunter St., took 26,556 ballots from Oct. 15 through Friday, Oct. 30.

That is 450 more than the Cary Senior Center, the next busiest of the county’s 18 sites. The figures come from the Wake County Board of Elections’ unofficial early voting turnout report, last refreshed at 8:48 p.m. Friday.

Early voting for the Nov. 3 general election ends at 3 p.m. Saturday. Anyone in line by 3 p.m. will be allowed to vote, the county said in its last-day notice.

The numbers

The county report counts ballots by site and by day. Through Friday:

  • 310,791 early ballots had been cast across Wake County.
  • 870,070 voters were eligible, so about 36% had already voted.
  • 4,758 people registered and voted the same day.
  • 26,556 ballots were cast in Apex, about 8.5% of the county total.

Apex led on both the first and the last full day. It took 1,902 ballots on opening day, Oct. 15, and 2,467 on Friday, Oct. 30, the most of any site each day. Friday was the county’s busiest day so far, with 30,960 ballots.

Bar chart of early voting ballots cast at Wake County's 18 sites from Oct. 15 to 30, 2026. John M. Brown Community Center in Apex leads with 26,556, ahead of Cary Senior Center with 26,106, Lake Lynn in Raleigh with 24,877, Abbotts Creek in Raleigh with 23,694 and Herbert C. Young in Cary with 23,078. Beech Bluff in Willow Spring is lowest with 5,329.
Unofficial early voting ballots by site, Oct. 15-30, from the Wake County Board of Elections. Chart by Peak City News
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The nearest sites to Apex were all busy too, according to the same report:

Site Town Ballots, Oct. 15-30
John M. Brown Community Center Apex 26,556
Cary Senior Center Cary 26,106
Herbert C. Young Community Center Cary 23,078
W.E. Hunt Recreation Center Holly Springs 16,857
Hilltop Needmore Town Park Clubhouse Fuquay-Varina 16,779

Cary is about five miles northeast of Apex, Holly Springs about five miles south and Fuquay-Varina about 11 miles south. The county calls every figure preliminary and unofficial, and the totals do not yet include Saturday.

What it means for you

If you have not voted, Saturday is the last early voting day. All 18 sites are open 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Any Wake County voter can use any site. The county expects the last day to be one of the busiest, and it runs a live wait time tracker so you can pick a shorter line.

“Eligible voters who still need to register in Wake County have through Saturday to register and vote using same-day registration,” Wake County Board of Elections Director Olivia McCall said.

On Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, the rules change:

  • Polls are open 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
  • You must vote at your assigned precinct, not at the early voting sites. Find it with the state voter search.
  • Same-day registration is not available on Election Day.
  • You will be asked for an acceptable photo ID. Without one, you can still vote and fill in a Photo ID Exception Form.
  • The Board of Elections Operations Center in Raleigh is not a polling place.

The Election Day details come from the county’s Election Day voting page. Our Apex voting guide has the full list of dates, mail ballot rules and contacts.

Countywide, the ballot includes the $680 million school bond. Our story explains what the Wake school bond would do at four Apex schools and what it would cost on your property tax bill.