Today is the day – Election Day. Polls are open until 8 p.m.; and if you’re already in line at eight o’clock, you will be able to cast a ballot and have your voice be heard. Secretary of State Nancy Landry says with more than 4,500 candidates competing in more than 2,500 contests throughout the state – obviously not on a single ballot; that would be some sort of record – you’re urged to look up your sample ballot on GeauxVote.com or on the GeauxVote app.
“You can find out what’s on your ballot and decide how you’re going to vote before you go into the polling booth; and that way, you won’t have to spend so much time reading it while you’re in the polling booth and you can speed those lines up a little bit by doing that ahead of time,” Landry said.
Landry says along with bringing your government-issued photo ID with you, there is a dress code of sorts that you will need to abide by in order to cast a ballot.
“There’s no electioneering allowed within 600 feet of a polling location, so leave your t-shirts and your hats at home. And that applies to everyone, whether they’re working on a campaign or not,” Landry noted.
Landry says certain voters may notice some people monitoring activity at the polling places – and that’s all they’ll be doing.
“The Department of Justice will send election monitors to three parishes: Orleans, East Baton Rouge and Lafayette. This is not out of the ordinary; it is something that’s allowed under federal law and it’s been done before in Louisiana in the past,” Landry explained.
Landry says based on early voting numbers, she’s expecting an overall voter turnout of between 48 and 52%, which would be one of the biggest turnouts of any non-presidential election in state history.
