Two bills seeing action this week in the Republican-led N.C. General Assembly would change the way Old North State voters elect judges and do away with straight-party ticket voting.

On Tuesday evening, the Senate voted 31-19 to lend tentative approval to the Vote for the Person, Not the Party Act.

Among those voting against the act was Sen. Stan White, D-Dare, who represents Beaufort County in the Senate.

White was in meetings and unavailable for comment Wednesday afternoon.

If given final approval in the Legislature, the bill would end straight-party ticket voting in the state.

Voters who want to mark their ballots exclusively for members of one specific party use straight-party ticket voting.

The Beaufort County Board of Elections doesn’t track how many county voters take advantage of straight-ticket voting in a given election, said Anita Bullock Branch, deputy elections director.

“A lot of people only use that in the presidential (elections),” Branch said.

Fewer voters cast a straight-ticket ballot in an off-year election, she added.

Straight-ticket voting is a popular method for marking a ballot, she confirmed.

Critics of Senate Bill 411 have argued the measure is part of a GOP-driven attempt to make it harder for people to vote or put Democratic legislative candidates at a disadvantage come election time.

Some of the Republican lawmakers who sponsored or co-sponsored the bill were in meetings Wednesday and couldn’t be reached for comment.

Rep. Bill Cook, R-Beaufort, supports the bill.

“I think folks should think about what they’re doing when they vote rather than just punching a ticket,” Cook said, adding, “Say what you will about voting for the right person, a lot of it still boils down to when you get here it’s a team sport.”

At least one local Republican thinks Senate Bill 411 is “a terrible idea.”

“Most folks take a look at every candidate, especially in Beaufort County,” said Greg Dority, chairman of the Beaufort County Republican Party.

“I think we should give people as many chances as possible on the ballot,” Dority continued.

Dority does favor Senate Bill 47, which would restore all of the state’s judicial elections to partisan status.

The bill would make party affiliation part of the candidacies for all of the state’s judges, including District Court and Superior Court judges, N.C. Supreme Court justices and N.C. Court of Appeals judges.

“I strongly favor that move,” Dority said. “The voters need to know the party affiliation of the candidate.”

These bills did not become law immediately and could be considered through 2011, according to The Associated Press.