Voting in Louisiana
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The policies governing voter participation are enacted and enforced primarily at the state level. These policies, which include voter identification requirements, early voting provisions, online voter registration systems, and more, dictate the conditions under which people cast their ballots in their respective states.
This article includes the following information about voting policies in Louisiana:
- Voter registration details, including deadlines and eligibility requirements.
- In-person voting details, including identification requirements, poll times, and early voting provisions.
- Absentee/mail-in voting deadlines and rules.
- Details about voting rules for people convicted of a felony.
- Contact information election agencies.
- Summaries of noteworthy policy-related events.
See Election administration in Louisiana for additional information about election administration in the state, including voter list maintenance policies, provisional ballot rules, and post-election auditing practices.
Do you have questions about your elections? Looking for information about your local election official? Click here to use U.S. Vote Foundation’s election official lookup tool.
Voter registration
The table below displays voter registration information specific to Louisiana's 2024 election cycle.
Eligibility and registration details
- Check your voter registration status here.
To vote in Louisiana, one must be a United States citizen who resides in the state and parish in which he or she registers. A voter must be at least 18 years old by Election Day.[1]
Registration completed via mail or in person must occur at least 30 days before Election Day. Registration completed online must occur at least 20 days before Election Day. Registrants must present a valid form of identification to register. Pre-registration is available beginning at age 16.[1]
Voters may register in person at any Registrar of Voters office or any of the following places:[1]
- Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles
- Louisiana Department of Social Services
- WIC offices
- Food stamp offices
- Medicaid offices
- Offices and agencies serving people with disabilities
- Military recruitment offices
In-person voting
The table below displays in-person voting information specific to Louisiana's 2024 election cycle.
Poll times
- See also: State poll opening and closing times
In Louisiana, polls are open from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Central time for Tuesday elections. For Saturday elections, polls open at 7:00 a.m. If the polls close while a voter is in line, he or she will still be permitted to vote.[2][3]
Voter identification
- See also: Voter identification laws by state
Louisiana requires voters to present photo identification while voting.[4]
Voters can present the following forms of identification. This list was current as of August 14, 2024. Click here to ensure you have the most current information.
- Louisiana driver's license
- Louisiana special identification card
- LA Wallet digital driver's license
- Military ID or other generally recognized picture identification card that contains the name and signature of the voter
Voters who do not have accepted ID may vote by completing a voter identification affidavit. By law, voters who sign an affidavit may be challenged.[5]
Registered voters can bring their voter information card to the Office of Motor Vehicles to receive a free Louisiana special identification card.[4]
Early voting
- See also: Early voting
Louisiana permits early voting. Learn more by visiting this website.
Early voting permits citizens to cast ballots in person at a polling place prior to an election. In states that permit no-excuse early voting, a voter does not have to provide an excuse for being unable to vote on Election Day. States that allow voters to cast no-excuse absentee/mail-in ballots in person are counted as no-excuse early voting states.
As of February 2024, 47 states and the District of Columbia permitted no-excuse early voting.
Absentee/mail-in voting
- See also: Absentee/mail-in voting
The table below displays absentee voting information specific to Louisiana's 2024 election cycle.
The following individuals are eligible to vote absentee in Louisiana:[6]
- Senior citizens, 65 years of age or older
- Voters who expect to be temporarily absent from the state or their parish during the early voting period and on election day
- Offshore workers
- Residents of nursing homes, veterans' homes, or hospitals
- Students, instructors, or professors (as well as their spouses and dependents) who are living outside of their parish
- Ministers, priests, rabbis, or other members of the clergy who are assigned outside of their parish
- Voters who moved more than 100 miles from the seat of their former parish within 30 days of an election
- Voters who are involuntarily confined to a mental institution and have not been judicially declared incompetent
- Voters who expect to be hospitalized on Election Day
- Incarcerated voters who have not been convicted of a felony
- Participants in the secretary of state's Address Confidentiality Program
- Sequestered jurors
Local election officials
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Voting rules for people convicted of a felony
According to the Louisiana Secretary of State's office,
“ | To reinstate your voter registration that was suspended for a felony conviction, you must appear in person at the registrar of voters office and provide documentation from the appropriate correction official showing that you are no longer under an order of imprisonment or, if under such order of imprisonment, that you have not been incarcerated pursuant to the order within the last five years and that you are not under an order of imprisonment related to a felony conviction for election fraud or any other election offense.
The personal appearance requirement does not apply to a person approved as eligible for the Special Program for Handicapped Voters prior to January 1, 2010, or a person who has submitted to the registrar a current proof of disability from a physician as described in La R.S. 18:177(A)(2)(6)."[7][8] |
” |
Voting rights for people convicted of a felony vary from state to state. In the majority of states, people convicted of a felony cannot vote while they are incarcerated but may regain the right to vote upon release from prison or at some point thereafter.[9]
Election administration agencies
Election agencies
- See also: State election agencies
Individuals seeking additional information about voting provisions in Louisiana can contact the following local, state, and federal agencies.
Louisiana Registrar of Voters
Secretary of State, Elections Division
- Physical address: 8585 Archives Ave.
- Baton Rouge, LA 70809
- Mailing address: P.O. Box 94125
- Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9125
- Phone: 225-922-0900
- Toll free: 1-800-883-2805
- Fax: 225-922-0945
- Website: http://www.sos.la.gov/
Louisiana Ethics Administration Program
- Physical address: 617 North Third Street
- LaSalle Building, Suite 10-36
- Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70802
- Mailing address: P.O. Box 4368
- Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70821
- Phone: 225-219-560
- Toll free: 1-800-842-6630
- Fax: 225-381-7271
- Email: https://ethics.la.gov/ContactUsEmail.aspx
- Website: https://ethics.la.gov/default.aspx
U.S. Election Assistance Commission
- 633 3rd Street NW, Suite 200
- Washington, DC 20001
- Phone: 301-563-3919
- Toll free: 1-866-747-1471
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://www.eac.gov
Noteworthy events
2021
On September 8, 2021, Louisiana Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin (R) announced that Governor John Bel Edwards (D) had agreed to postpone the state's fall elections. The first-round and second-round elections were rescheduled to take place on November 13, 2021, and December 11, 2021, respectively. The first-round and second-round elections were originally scheduled to take place on October 9, 2021, and November 13, 2021. The governor's office confirmed the postponements on September 9, 2021.[10][11]
In a September 7, 2021, press release outlining his recommendation for the postponements, Ardoin said, "A number of issues stemming from Hurricane Ida's devastation, including questions about nursing home operations, postal service delivery, extensive power outages, polling location damages, and election commissioners and staff members still displaced, would make holding the election on its original dates virtually impossible without impairing the integrity of the election."[12]
Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker
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The Ballot Bulletin
The Ballot Bulletin is a weekly email that delivers the latest updates on election policy. The Ballot Bulletin tracks developments in election policy around the country, including legislative activity, big-picture trends, and recent news. Each email contains in-depth data from our Election Administration Legislation Tracker. You'll also be able to track relevant legislation, with links to and summaries of the bills themselves.
Recent issues
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- The Ballot Bulletin: August 16, 2024
- The Ballot Bulletin: August 9, 2024
- The Ballot Bulletin: August 2, 2024
- The Ballot Bulletin: July 26, 2024
- The Ballot Bulletin: July 19, 2024
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Ballotpedia's election coverage
- United States Senate Democratic Party primaries, 2024
- United States House Democratic Party primaries, 2024
- Democratic Party gubernatorial primaries, 2024
- Democratic Party Secretary of State primaries, 2024
- Democratic Party Attorney General primaries, 2024
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- United States Senate Republican Party primaries, 2024
- United States House Republican Party primaries, 2024
- Republican Party gubernatorial primaries, 2024
- Republican Party Secretary of State primaries, 2024
- Republican Party Attorney General primaries, 2024
- State legislative Republican primaries, 2024
See also
- 2024 election dates and deadlines
- Voter ID in Louisiana
- Election administration in Louisiana
- Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Louisiana
Elections in Louisiana
- Louisiana elections, 2024
- Louisiana elections, 2023
- Louisiana elections, 2022
- Louisiana elections, 2021
- Louisiana elections, 2020
- Louisiana elections, 2019
- Louisiana elections, 2018
- Louisiana elections, 2017
- Louisiana elections, 2016
- Louisiana elections, 2015
- Louisiana elections, 2014
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Louisiana Secretary of State, "Register to Vote," accessed August 15, 2024
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "FAQ: Voting on Election Day," accessed August 15, 2024
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Vote on Election Day," accessed August 15, 2024
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Louisiana Secretary of State, "Vote on Election Day," accessed August 15, 2024
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Louisiana voters' bill of rights and voting information," accessed August 15, 2024
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Vote Absentee," accessed April 11, 2023
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Frequently Asked Questions," accessed August 15, 2024
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "Felon Voting Rights," August 15, 2024
- ↑ Office of the Louisiana Secretary of State, "SECRETARY OF STATE ARDOIN ANNOUNCES RESCHEDULING OF FALL 2021 ELECTIONS," September 8, 2021
- ↑ Office of the Governor of Louisiana, "Gov. Edwards Delays Fall Elections in Louisiana Following Hurricane Ida," September 9, 2021
- ↑ Office of the Louisiana Secretary of State, "SECRETARY OF STATE ARDOIN CALLS ON GOVERNOR TO RESCHEDULE FALL 2021 ELECTIONS," September 7, 2021
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