you have the two candidates that seem to be bringing people into the political system who were not voting and not participating. >> reporter: merely 70,000 people voted early across the state, 10.5% of registered voters, significantly more than in 2012. >> it's important to make your that ourselves as well as our children are taken care of in the long run. >> reporter: this is the first time that the state's primary election is in march instead of may and puts more importance on the north carolina primary. thousands of north carolinians have switched political parties that they formally want is. more than 20,000 people changed party affiliations. does that surprise you? >> yes, it does. >> reporter: the bigger question, will we know the republican and democratic nominees for president if donald trump and hillary clinton secure or win all five

if they do, they will have enough delegates for the nomination and the voting precincts will be open until 7:30. liz foster, channel 9 eyewitness news. and it's a big night. liz, thank you. voters will find party nomination races for governor and senate and the legislature. goff mccrory and pat cooper are considered favorites, and we caught up with governor mccrory as he voted. he made sure to have his id on hand today. he has been coming here to vote for nearly 30 years. >> i have been voting here for a long time and came out here at 31 years old and now at the

see my name on the ballot. >> next at 6:00, we'll talk with the governor about what he is focused on most today. and we are looking at what will solidify their race to the white house. >> and the candidates have crisscrossed the states to secure votes. erica bryant is breaking down who is favored to win. >> reporter: allison and scott, there were 107 delegates for the democrats and 72 for the republicans in north carolina. earlier at 5:00, we told you that presidential candidate hillary clinton was the only presidential candidate to make a stop in north carolina today. and tonight, she'll be headed to florida. there is a new poll that shows clinton is leading bernie sanders 56 to 37%. sanders was in chicago today

day after he spoke to thousands at the pnc music pavilion in charlotte. meantime, ted cruz doesn't have any campaign stops today but is expected to be in texas tonight for a watch party. on sunday, he was in concord for a rally. candidate donald trump also won't be making known campaign stops but will be in florida tonight holding a news conference. yesterday, he was at lenoir ryan university in hickory where six people were cited. the public policy poll show that is trump has a commanding lead in north carolina with 44%. cruz is in second place with 33. channel 9 learned that cumberland county sheriffs office will not charge trump after a protester was punched during a rally in fayetteville last week. deputies led a demonstrator out of the event when a man punched him in the face. john mcgraw is charged with assault and battery and communicating threats.

evidence does not prove that trump tried to incite a riot. allison? >> thank you, erica, and we are taking you back out to the ballots. this is at could have in any event presbyterian church. voting has been busy in gaston county as well where they have the lowest turn out in the state from just two years ago. the precincts have seen a steady slow of voters throughout the day and expect 30% of the voters will cast the ballot compared to just 9% in 2014. most tell us that they are looking to decide the nominee for president. and voters will decide if alcohol should be sold at convenience stores.

allowed to sell beer and wine. their referendums for voters to decide if they want to buy beer and wine at convenience stores. voters will have to show a north carolina driver's license to vote or any other accessible form of id. many parts of the law are being challenge inside court, and for now, you have to show id if you want tho vote. there are other id options. you can use a passport, a u.s. military id card and a identification card can be accepted also. coming up at 6:00, continuing tomorrow coverage of north carolina's primary and what's at stake. several issues are affecting your money and education. stay up to date on our election coverage tonight on wsoctv.com and on soarl on -- social

charlotte-mecklenburg school leaders put on notice. last night at 11:00, we brought you the breaking news that matthews passed a resolution to leave the school district unless it's guaranteed neighborhood schools. tonight, stephanie maxwell found out there may already be options for families if the town and district break ties. >> reporter: this is the future home of matthews charter school. when it opens in the fall, it will be at max capacity and that's bringing interest from parents. >> we have awaiting list of 697 students. >> reporter: that's after accepting close to 650 students for kindergarten through 6th grade. the board president of the charter schools is a supporter of school choice and anticipates more interest if cms goes through with the controversial redistricting plan. >> once the building starts going up and students start enrolling, cms will be weightless.

over surveys if i would out by parents to bring more diversity to all schools. the most controversial option is moving kids out of neighborhood schools. parents are demanding a spot for students at neighborhood schools or look at leaving the district. >> i think that would be very bad for cms. it's an united states versus them. >> reporter: jeremy stevenson is part of the group cms families united for public education and sees the resolution as a step backwards but understand yes it happened and said that growing worries from parents who want neighborhood schools led to this one. >> we are all in the same boat and if people are trying to jump off, that's not good for any of us. >> reporter: the charter school here hopes to span the 8th grade giving parents more options for those not happy with cms.

>> and here is a breakdown of the matthews resolution. a task force would find out what the town must do to form an independent district and there are three potential options, matthews forming its own district, form charter schools, or break cms into three districts, north mecklenburg, middle mecklenburg, and southern mecklenburg. police tell channel 9 that a man found dead in alexander county might have been killed in ab natural and then taken to the county. tony hearne and linsey lengthsz were charged after trying to bury hearne's uncle. they are facing charges of first-degree murder and are set to appear in court tomorrow. new at 5:00, a rock hill

she pepper sprayed her 14-year- old son. latoya austin is charged with cruelty to children. she said she sprayed him because he didn't say thank you after she bought him an item at the store. the department of social services is investigating. the tragic death of a dog has led to an internal investigation at the gaston county police department. police say this is the way that dog looked when animal control responded to a complaint last week. the owner was imifn a few days to get the dog to a vet but the dog died before that happened. >> our goal is to get the owner to be responsible for taking care of the animal and getting the veterinary care for the animal. >> police are trying to determine if the owner should face animal cruelty charges.

guidelines for prescribing opiod painkillers including oxycodone and offers alternative treatments such as physical therapy. and they include also offering the lowest doses for patients. this map breaks down the numbers for the states with the most overdose deaths. you can see the most that is in the western counties of the state where this is happening. just before spring break, gas prices are shooting up across charlotte. how much more drivers are paying out and the problems that it could create. >> temperatures this afternoon, close to 80 degrees, almost 20 degrees above average. when we come back, i'll show you when a close of reality arrives. >> a dangerous situation at charlotte/douglas.

trying to land. the risk forfolks have some questionsabout my spicy, freshly-preparedworld-famous zinger sandwich. like,"is it freshly-prepared?" yes. "is the freshly-preparedzinger sandwich available in a $5 fill up?" if you have five dollars, yes. what a great limited time deal!

she says their names. trayvon martin shot to death. dontre hamilton unarmed. sandra bland... did nothing wrong. and makes their mothers' fight for justice her own.

we need action now. and stands with the president against those who would undo his achievements. just like she's always...stood with us. hillary clinton. i'm hillary clinton and i approve this message. folks have some questionsabout my spicy, freshly-preparedworld-famous zinger sandwich. like,"is it freshly-prepared?" yes. "is the freshly-preparedzinger sandwich available in a $5 fill up?" if you have five dollars, yes. what a great limited time deal! it's finger lickin' good! there's less than two hours left to cast your vote ms.

see a lot of voters coming to this polling site. next at 6:00, our team coverage breaks down what's at stake in major races and how much your votes count. all new, police are trying to track down the person who flew a drone near charlotte/douglas putting passengers in danger. >> it is pilots reported seeing this as they landed on saturday night. and joe bruno found out how close the planes came to the drone. >> reporter: every day, thousands of people fly into the charlotte/douglas international airport. but on saturday, two pilots were concerned when they saw something else in the sky. >> you are clear to land. a drone reported at 2000 feet. >> reporter: air traffic control operators warned approaching pilots several times as they made their way to the runway. two planes nearly missed flying into a drone while trying to land at the airport on saturday.

flying somewhere near the 3400 block of the brookshires and 2000 feet in the air. that's about six miles from the charlotte/douglas international airport. drone users are banned from flying within 5 miles of the airport or higher than 400 feet. this isn't the first time this has happened. channel 9 sorted through faa data and discovered in 2015 there were six drone sights at charlotte/douglas. drone experts we spoke with say incidents like this are too common due to inexperienced flyers. >> the positive needs to outweigh the negative. >> reporter: i checked with police and no arrests have been made and no suspects in the cases. joe bruno, channel 9, eyewitness news. new developments. the obama administration said it will not allow drilling in the atlantic ocean.

on twitter saying this would protect atlantic for future generations. this proposal would have opened up sites off the carolina coast. governor nikki haley and senator scott supported the idea. opponents praised the decision saying this will protect beaches and the environment. there was a heated meeting today with testimony about the water crisis that exposed thousands of children to toxic lead. environmental agency that drink. fingers at city officials. >> made the decision about the use of the flint river. >> the topic of flint river was

>> while lawmakers blamed the legislature, there is blame at the federal level. tomorrow, there will be calls for the governor to resign. and parents are refusing to get their kids vaccinated and that may be the cause of an outbreak of measles and whooping cough. 70% of those opting out had cited philisophical or religious reasons. and we are take egg live look from charlotte. clear blue skies out there, and nice and warm and wait until tomorrow. steve udelson joins us from severe weather center 9. the warm weather keeps rolling. pushing 6:00, mid-march.

chesterfield and 79 uptown and concord, and we have 81 in morganton and 70s across the high country. you expect this in midmay, not mid-march. light up the grill for dinner, sundown, 7:30 and temperatures in the 70 this is evening, and winds are light. the bus stop forecast tomorrow, unusually mild, low to mid-40s for this time of year and mid- 50s early on. 8:00, around 60, and here a look at futurecast. we will see clouds and showers across the high country first thing tomorrow morning. the showers will try and make a run at the metro but fall short with a few says paing -- passing clouds midday through the afternoon. check out the hour by hour temperature forecast that you can also see on our free app.

the record high tomorrow, 83, and of the -- forecasting a high tomorrow of 83. we are still talking about upper 60s tomorrow afternoon in the mountains. the neighborhood forecast in monroe, mighty mild, lower 80s in spite of the midday clouds. we talked about the cool down. watch the timeline on futurecast. we start at 5:00 this time tomorrow afternoon. watch the shades of blue pushed back into the carolinas. we have the first official day of spring that may not feel that warm. check out the 5-day forecast, mid-70s on thursday and not bad for st. patrick's day, and a little cooler and notice that trend into the weekend, and not a lot of rain but it will feel cooler and maybe like the first day of spring. >> no rain in sight?

enough for temporarily relief. >> thank you, steve. new at 6:00, what today's election could mean for your money and local projects, and

admitting e nfl is american workers brought us back from the crash. now, let's move forward. we need jobs that providedignity and a bright future. new penalties to stop companies from moving profits and jobs overseas. for businesses that create manufacturing jobs, a new tax credit. and let's invest in clean energy jobs, with 500 million solar panels installed by the end of her first term. we've gotta create new jobs andindustries of the future.

approv new tonight, thousands of carolinians will spend more on gas traveling for spring break. the current surprise is around $1.80, up 12 cents from a week ago. regular refine remains is slowing down oil production impacting gas prices. we looked at the current gas

while charlotte is paying $1.80, south carolina is paying almost the cheapest at $1.71. the national average is just below 2. and the higher prices could hurt retail sales. sales fell 2% last month because of lower prices. economists hoping it happened increase spending but it could cause consumers from spending more with higher prices. you can find the cheapest gas in your neighborhood at wsoctv.com. look for our gas tracker under the traffic tab. if you are looking for a job in iredell county, walmart is looking to fill 100 jobs. the company has opened a temporary hiring center at 350 west plaza drive, suite m. the majority of new hires will

grand opening will happen. and free movies in north carolina are expected to bring in $40 million in revenue, including a remake of "dirty jackson." those in the area say that's great for business, and when films are made in the state convention and visitor's bureaus breck in bring from a lot of revenue. this week marks 1 year since mecklenburg went smoke free including government-owned buildings and properties and greenways in charlotte and surrounding up toes. tobacco use is the number one

diseas vo: know you have a dedicatedadvisor and team who understand where you come from. we didn't really have anything, you know. but, we made do. vo: know you can craft an investment plan as strong as your values. al, how you doing. hey, mr. hamilton. vo: know that together you can establish a meaningful legacy. with the guidance and support of your dedicated pnc wealth management team. folks have some questionsabout my spicy, freshly-preparedworld-famous zinger sandwich. questions like, "why isn'tthis world-famous sandwich available in america?" answer: bureaucratic oversight. "is it spicy?" as i said in my preamble, yes. "is it a sandwich?"

the zinger sandwich is afreshly-prepared sandwich that is spicy. "is the world-famouszinger sandwich available in a $5 fill up?" the answer depends on whetheror not you have five dollars. but yes. what a great limited time deal! it's finger lickin' good! a contentious race for the white house, first coming through north carolina. >> trying to make a change. >> voters could make or break presidential campaigns. >> it will be very hard to choose who to vote for. >> and channel 9 is breaking down the millions at stake in your community. >> and a live look at people casting the last-minute ballots in dilworth.

>> and i'm erica bryant. we have the latest on the most controversial races ever. we start with elsa gillis. elsa? >> reporter: the presidential candidates were out and about making final appearances throughout the primaries with senator bernie sanders making stops and hillary clinton coming out to remind people how important it is to vote. she spoke highly of sanders and is proud of the campaigns they have both won. of course, they are both in it to win it with a sizeable body over bernie sanders, but sandsers said he felt confident. >> i feel if there is a large

great here and hopefully, north carolina and florida. i think that in the state that is coming down the pike, we have great opportunities. >> reporter: leaders from the democratic party in the area will gather here in just about an hour to watch the results roll in. i'll be bringing you their reaction tonight at 10:00 and 11:00. elsa gillis, channel 9, eyewitness news. and now we turn to the contentionious republican primary. as blake hanson explains, the candidates worked hard the past few days to leave their mark. blake? >> reporter: yeah, erica. and it doesn't hurt that donald trump has been very visible in north carolina in hickory yesterday and concord last monday. this is video of trump in