CARY, NC (WNCN) — Barbara Wright said that she panicked when she found two ballots, sealed and signed, on the ground while on a walk around her neighborhood in Cary. Wright told CBS17 that she initially thought the papers were trash until she looked closer to realize they were people’s votes. “When I noticed the stamp, I was like 'uh oh, someone is mailing these.' But why would they throw them in the street?” Wright said. Long lines seen at early voting sites in Guilford County This began a search to find the rightful owners and to make sure their votes were counted. Wright said she located Marybeth and Eric Merkle that day, leaving the married couple a note to let them know she found their ballots. Marybeth told CBS17 that she and her husband had noticed their ballots were gone, even though the flag was still up on their mailbox. She said they worried someone might have taken their ballots. Then she found the note on her door Tuesday morning. “I felt very peaceful about it or happy that it was resolved in a way that my vote got counted and my husband's vote got counted,” Merkle said. After speaking on the phone, Merkle said they agreed to let Wright take their ballots to the Wake County Board of Elections. Danner McCulloh from the Wake County Board of Elections told CBS17 that now that they’ve been notified of the issue, the Merkles will likely need to cast new votes. “Without that chain of custody. We would want to contact those voters to get it resolved and replace those ballots,” McCulloh said.