RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — Following Georgia's lead, North Carolina also saw a strong voter turnout for day one of early voting. Georgia voters kicked off the early, in-person voting period in record-breaking fashion with more than 310,000 votes cast on Tuesday, the state's first day of early voting. When does early voting start and what do you need to vote? On Thursday, in North Carolina, day one amounted to 353,166 early voting ballots cast. This is the largest-ever turnout in the history of first-day early voting in the state. Total ballots tallied in N.C. through end-of-day Thursday were 428,299 when combining early votes with the 75,133 absentee ballots already returned. Tim Walz, rapper Common mark first day of North Carolina early voting in Winston-Salem The amount of early voting ballots cast on Thursday is more than double the voter turnout N.C. saw on day one of early voting for the 2016 General Election when about 166,000 ballots were cast statewide, according to the N.C. State Board of Elections. The 2024 early voting turnout tops the previous North Carolina record set in 2020 when just over 348,000 ballots were cast across the state on the first day of early voting, NCSBE data shows. Second day of early voting On Friday, lines continue to form at early voting sites in Wake County. Some told CBS 17 they had been waiting an hour. "I knew who I wanted to vote for and I wanted to get it done," said Janice Hunsinger, one of the many voters in the queue. Another in the line said the long lines bring him hope. "This is a country-changing voting time, it’s very different than any other time," said Scott Perrill, another in the line. You can keep track of the latest, updated NC voter turnout numbers here.