LUMBERTON — People who need a bit of curbside help when voting need to be aware of a change that takes effect Wednesday, with the first day of early voting for the District 9 congressional race.

Tina Bledsoe, interim director of the county Board of Elections, said that curbside voters should no longer cast their ballots at the Elections Office on Walnut Street, but instead can get assistance at the Pine Street Senior Citizen parking lot that is nearby, at 801 N. Eighth St. She said that will be the permanent location for this primary and future elections for curbside voters casting a ballot during One Stop Voting.

Directional signs will be in place to help anyone who needs it, Bledsoe said.

Wednesday begins the early voting period for the congressional race, which was ordered to be held again, beginning with the primary because the state Board of Elections found that election fraud associated with absentee ballots, primarily in Bladen County, cast doubt on Republican Mark Harris’ apparent 905-vote victory over Democrat Dan McCready.

Early voting can be done in Lumberton or at the Pembroke library, with election day being May 14. The general election is scheduled for Sept. 10.

Only Republicans and unaffiliated voters who choose a Republican ballot can vote.

There are 10 Republicans running, but not Harris, who decided not to run again. If none of them garner at least 30 percent of the vote, a runoff will be held on Sept. 10 and the general election will be moved to Nov. 5, the day of municipal elections.

McCready, Allen Smith, the Green Party candidate, and Jeff Scott, the Libertarian Party candidate, each was the only person to file in their party and therefore get a pass to the general election.