Police pepper-spray protesters including children on peaceful march to polling station in North Carolina

Witnesses claimed that several children, including a five-year-old girl, were sprayed during the demonstration

Police pepper-sprayed protesters during a peaceful march to a polling station after it stopped for nearly nine minutes in the street in honour of George Floyd.

Video footage showed officers targeting the group of around 200 people at the "I am Change" rally outside the historic courthouse in Graham, North Carolina.

Witnesses claimed that several children including a five-year-old girl were sprayed during the demonstration, which aimed to encourage people to vote in the 2020 election.

North Carolina governor Roy Cooper described the incident as "unacceptable". He added: "Peaceful demonstrators should be able to have their voices heard and voter intimidation in any form cannot be tolerated."

The Graham Police Department insisted that the “pepper-based vapor” was sprayed on to the ground and denied it was used directly on protesters.

In a statement, the department said that the pepper spray was first used when the rally blocked the road for over nine minutes and the crowd failed to follow orders to disperse.

Pepper spray was used for a second time after the rally was “deemed unsafe and unlawful” after an officer was assaulted near the courthouse and warnings were given to the crowd to disperse, the department added.

"The warnings included that if they failed to disperse force would be used and you would be subject to arrest. Several people remained after the final warning and officers again deployed a pepper based vapor onto the ground to assist in the dispersing the crowd.

"At no time during this event did any member of the Graham Police Department directly spray any participant in the march with chemical irritants."

However Democratic candidate Scott Huffman condemned the use of pepper spray on the rally. "We were peacefully demonstrating, we were exercising our First Amendment rights with Black Lives Matter," Mr Huffman said in a video posted on Twitter.

The police also criticised the organiser of the march, Greg Drumwright, for failing to apply for road closures in advance and failing "to establish viable communication with our department for the planning portion of the rally."

A demonstrator is detained by police  (via REUTERS)

Mr Drumwright, a pastor, was one of eight people arrested during the rally, which began at Wayman’s Chapel AME Church and was due to head to the polling station at Elm Street following a stop at the Confederate Monument at Court Square.

The Alamance County Sheriff's Office said in a statement that it made arrests due to "violations of the permit" obtained by the organiser.

"Mr Drumwright chose not to abide by the agreed upon rules," it said. "As a result, after violations of the permit, along with disorderly conduct by participants leading to arrests, the protest was deemed an unlawful assembly and participants were asked to leave."