March in Asheville encourages residents to vote ahead of primary election deadlines
By Shelly Garzon
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ASHEVILLE, North Carolina (WLOS) — With early voting wrapping up for the 2026 primary election and the voter registration deadline quickly approaching, community members in Asheville are rallying around one message: Participation matters.
Groups like Asheville Fights Back Network are working to energize voters ahead of key deadlines.
“Think about yourself, but also think about your neighbor because we’re going to get forward together, we’re going to get forward with love,” Lola Lafey, an organizer with Asheville Fights Back Network, said.
Friday night, the group hosted a march from Asheville Middle School to the Wesley Grant Center with the goal of increasing voter turnout.
“There’s several different voting locations and whether you walk to the polls, you drive to the polls, you take the bus, get yourself to the polls,” Lafey said.
Polls will close at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 28, which is the last day for early voting and for residents to register to vote before primary Election Day.
Residents who participated in the march said they joined to feel a sense of community and collective power.
“It helps me feel more powerful as part of a block of people that is powerful, not personally powerful, but we can do something real together,” resident Melissa Hyman said.
Participants said they hope events like the march will inspire others to cast their ballots.
“Even if it’s very humble and small today, every step that we take and every time we sing together and get together and march together, it grows the movement,” Hyman said.
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