All registered voters may cast a ballot during the early voting period at the Registrar of Voters Office or at an alternate site designated for early voting. You do not need a reason to vote early.

The early voting period is from 14 days to seven days before each election, from 8:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. (except Sundays and legal holidays).  For presidential elections, the early voting period is from 18 to seven days before the election (except Sundays and legal holidays). One day of early voting will be added to the beginning of the early voting period anytime one or more state holidays (except Sundays) fall within the early voting period.

Persons in nursing homes, veterans' homes or long stay hospitals for a physical disability may apply for the nursing home program to vote during an extended early voting period at their facility.

At your parish Registrar of Voters Office or at an alternate site designated for early voting.

No, a voter who has voted during the early voting period or voted absentee by mail and their ballot was received by the registrar of voters may not vote at the polls on Election Day.

Voters in Louisiana are responsible to:

• Notify your parish registrar of voters of any changes to your registration. (Failure to update your residential address may result in an inactive registration status. Inactive voters must verify their residential address prior to voting, which may be done on election day at the precinct, in person at the Registrar of Voters’ Office, online at www.GeauxVote.com, or by mail through a voter registration application.)
• Know which precinct you are registered to vote in, its location, and the hours the polls are open.
• Provide photo identification, or complete a voter identification affidavit. (Photo ID may be a Louisiana driver’s license, Louisiana special ID card, a United States military identification card that contains your name and picture, or other generally recognized photo ID that contains your name and signature. You may obtain a free Louisiana special ID card by presenting your voter registration information card to the Office of Motor Vehicles.)​
• Do not bring or wear any campaign literature to the polls.
• Be prepared to timely cast your ballot by reviewing your sample ballot posted at the polling place, or reviewing online before election day at www.GeauxVote.com or on ​our voter portal​.
• Provide or complete necessary documentation when requesting assistance in voting, if not previously marked in the precinct register as being eligible for assistance.
• Inform commissioners if you need a braille booklet, audio voting keypad, or page magnifier to assist you in voting.
• Restore your voting rights after a felony conviction by appearing in person at the Registrar of Voters’ Office, providing the reinstatement documentation, as required by La. R.S. 18:177, and showing documentation that you have either completed your probation or parole, or that you have not been incarcerated pursuant to the order of imprisonment for a felony conviction within the last five years and that the felony conviction was not for election fraud or any other election offenses pursuant to La. R.S. 18:1461.2. If you are disabled and unable to appear in person, you may submit your application and documentation, along with proof of disability, by mail, facsimile, commercial carrier, or hand delivery.
• Cast your vote within the six minute time limit provided by law, or within twenty minutes if receiving assistance or using the audio voting keypad. If the ballot is lengthy or if it contains complex propositions or constitutional amendments, the commissioners may allocate additional time in an equitable manner.
• Promptly leave the polling place after voting.
  
  ​
  
  
  

In Louisiana, you have a right to:

• Vote privately, confidentially and independently in an area that is free from any campaign materials.
• Ask a commissioner to instruct you on how to operate the voting machine before voting.
• Have a campaign-free zone 600 feet from the entrance to the polling place that is free from solicitation, intimidation, harassment, confusion, obstruction, undue influence, use of violence, force or threats, or action that impedes your entrance or exit to the polling place.
• Vote in a polling place that meets accessibility standards for individuals with disabilities.
• Receive assistance in casting your ballot, or use the audio ballot if you are unable to read or unable to vote without assistance due to a physical disability, including visual impairment.
• Use a braille booklet describing the use of the audio ballot, or use a page magnifier that will magnify the face of the voting machine.
• ​Go to the front of the line with the person who will be assisting you in voting if you have a visible physical disability or have in your possession a current mobility impairment photo ID card issued by the Office of Motor Vehicles.
  
  ​
  
  
  

An inactive status means that your registration address has not been verified by the registrar of voters through the annual canvass of the voter rolls or election mail sent to your registration address has been returned as undeliverable by the postal service to the registrar of voters.

You may still vote!  In order to do so and return to active status, you must verify your residential address prior to voting.  You may do this when you vote on election day, in person at the Registrar of Voters Office, online or by mail through a voter registration application. If you verify your address before election day, you must do so at least 30 days before an election for your status to be updated for that election.

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).

Voters in Louisiana may request assistance in voting when they are registering to vote or when making a change to their voter registration.  Assistance in voting is allowed when you have a physical disability or you are unable to read.

PRIOR TO ELECTION DAY - A voter, who is physically disabled or unable to read, may request assistance in voting by timely completing a voter registration application requesting assistance.  These voters will be marked in the precinct register or the voter registration system as being entitled to receive assistance in voting.

ON ELECTION DAY or DURING EARLY VOTING - A voter who is not marked in the precinct register or the voter registration system as being entitled to receive assistance in voting may apply to receive assistance in one of the following manners:
    1.  If physically disabled, request assistance in voting by completing and signing a Voter Assistance Form.  
    2.  Alternatively, a request for assistance in voting may be made by presenting proof of disability through one of the following documents:

• a physician's certificate indicating the voter's inability to vote without assistance because of a physical disability;
• a current mobility impaired photo identification card issued by the Office of Motor Vehicles; or
• a copy of current documentation showing eligibility for disability benefits from either social security, veterans affairs, paratransit services, the Office for Citizens with Developmental Disabilities or the Louisiana Rehabilitation Services.

These documents may also be presented to the registrar of voters by mail and the voter is required to include a copy of their Louisiana driver's license, Louisiana special identification card, or other generally recognized photo ID with name and signature. If mailed timely, the registrar will mark the voter in the voter registration system and the precinct register as being entitled to receive assistance in voting and the voter will not be required to present evidence when voting.

Voters entitled to assistance in voting are allowed up to 20 minutes to cast their ballots and may choose to receive the assistance from any person, including a commissioner, with these exceptions:

• a candidate in the election;
• a commissioner-in-charge;
• an employer or employer's agent;
• a union agent; 
• staff of state-operated facilities for disabled persons (by rule, the Department of Health (LDH) prohibits staff from assisting residents of state-operated facilities for mentally disabled/developmentally disabled persons); and
• owners, operators, administrators or employees of a nursing home, veterans' home or long stay hospitals for those with physical disabilities may not assist a person in voting. 

The person or commissioner assisting the voter is required to sign the precinct register and to check a box if the voter is not marked in the precinct register as being entitled to receive assistance in voting.  No person assisting a voter shall reveal the name of any person for whom the voter voted, any proposition the voter voted on or anything that took place while the voter was being assisted.

Each voter is required to identify themselves by giving their name and address before voting by presenting a Louisiana driver's license, a Louisiana special identification card, LA Wallet digital driver's license, a United States military identification card that contains the voter's name and picture or other generally recognized picture identification card that contains the name and signature of the voter, or by completing a Voter Identification Affidavit (AV-34) if no photo identification is available. A voter without photo ID may vote after completing the affidavit but is subject to challenge by law.

You may obtain a free Louisiana special identification card by presenting your voter information card to the Office of Motor Vehicles.

Louisiana uses the ImageCast® X (or “ICX”) voting system leased from Dominion Voting Systems during early voting. Paper ballots may be used, if necessary. All elections are open to all eligible voters in Louisiana, except for the Presidential Preference Primary and the state and local party elections (Democratic and Republican State Central Committees and Parish Executive Committees). which are restricted to party registration.

The voting system is a touchscreen voting machine.   When voting, touch the screen lightly. If you have any questions, please notify the registrar of voters for assistance BEFORE casting your vote. A voter shall make at least one selection in a candidate or proposition election in order to cast a ballot. You are allowed, by law, six minutes to cast your vote or twenty minutes if entitled to assistance or using the audio voting keypad. If the ballot is lengthy or if it contains complex propositions or constitutional amendments, the commissioners may allocate additional time in an equitable manner.​ After voting, you are required to promptly leave the polling place.   TO CAST A BALLOT:  

1. After receiving a VOTER CARD, insert it into the bright yellow card slot located at the bottom of the voting machine and push the card in until it stops. Ask for assistance to insert your voter card if needed.
2. Select the box for the candidate of your choice, “Yes” or “No” for a proposition or constitutional amendment, and “FOR” or “AGAINST” for a recall question by:
• Touching the box (□) to the RIGHT of a candidate’s name or question of your choice. Confirm that a check mark appears in the box located next to your choice.
• To change your selection, press the box again and the check mark will disappear and then you may make a new choice.
• Press the “NEXT” button located at the BOTTOM RIGHT side of the display to continue to the next screen.
• To return to the previous screen, touch the “PREVIOUS” button at the bottom CENTER of the display. Once you are done making your selections, review the summary of all your votes on the “REVIEW PAGE.”
• To make a change, touch the office or issue to return to that ballot screen for that contest.
• To cast your ballot, touch the “NEXT” button at the bottom right side of the display and then touch “CAST YOUR BALLOT.” You will then see “THANK YOU FOR VOTING! YOUR BALLOT IS SUCCESSFULLY CAST” and you will hear a sound which signals your vote has been recorded.
3. Remove your VOTER CARD and RETURN IT TO THE COMMISSIONER.

No, Louisiana does not allow for write-in candidates.  The only exception is for military and overseas citizens who are voting on a Federal Write-in Absentee Ballot (FWAB) and they may write in the candidate names, but only the candidates that are actually on Louisiana's ballot.

Louisiana state law prohibits: ​

• giving or offering to give, directly or indirectly, money or anything of present or prospective value to influence a vote
• doing any of the following within 600 feet of the entrance of the polling place on election day:
• ​handing out or displaying campaign cards, pictures, or other campaign literature, or placing or displaying political signs, pictures, or other forms of political advertising which advocate for or against any candidate, proposition, or political party appearing on the ballot. The only exception is for placing or displaying political signs or pictures on private property that is not being used as a polling place
• Circulating a petition or seeking handwritten signatures to a petition
• knowingly, willfully, or intentionally transmitting or otherwise providing false or misleading information concerning an election from a source disguised as or impersonating the secretary of state, a registrar of voters, a clerk of court, or other election official
  
• intimidating, deceiving or misinforming, directly or indirectly, any voter or prospective voter in matters concerning voting or nonvoting
• voting or attempting to vote more than once at an election
• offering money or anything of apparent present or prospective value or use, directly or indirectly, or engage in any form of intimidation to influence the action or encourage inaction of any election official with regard to the duties of his or her office
• disobeying any lawful instruction of the registrar, deputy registrars, commissioners or a law enforcement officer assisting at the early voting location or polling place or without lawful authority, obstructing, hindering or delaying any voter on his way to or while returning home from any early voting location or polling place where an election is held or impede a voter from entering or exiting an early voting location or polling place
• voting or attempting to vote, knowing that you are not qualified, or influencing or attempting to influence another to vote, knowing such voter to be unqualified or the vote to be fraudulent
• voting or attempting to vote in the name of another or in an assumed or fictitious name, or in any manner other than as provided by the Louisiana Election Code
• supplying a false answer or statement to an election official or on any document required by the Louisiana Election Code, or executing an affidavit knowing it to contain false or incorrect information
• forging the name of another, or using a fictitious name on an affidavit or document required by the Louisiana Election Code
• unlawfully, directly or indirectly, possessing, tampering with, breaking, impairing, impeding or otherwise interfering with the maintenance, adjustment, delivery, use or operation of any voting machine or with any paraphernalia connected with or appertaining to the machine
• voters, election officials, watchers, or persons assisting a voter to allow a ballot to be seen, (except as provided by law), announce the manner in which a person has cast a ballot, place a distinguishing mark on a ballot with intent to make the ballot identifiable or make a false statement concerning a voter's ability to mark a ballot without assistance
• coercing, compelling or otherwise influencing an assisted voter to cast a vote in a certain way or fail to mark the ballot or vote in the manner dictated by the voter by the person providing assistance
• signing another voter's name in the precinct register
• attempting to influence an election official or watcher in the performance of his or her duties
• appearing in an intoxicated condition or possessing any beverage of alcoholic content
• voting at the polls on election day if you have voted early or submitted your absentee ballot
• voting if you have moved more than three months ago to an address outside of the parish or if registered to vote in another parish or state
• remaining within any early voting location or polling place or within a radius of 600 feet of the entrance of any polling place, except when exercising the right to vote, after having been directed by a commissioner or law enforcement officer to leave the premises or area of an early voting location or polling place
• ​carrying or possessing a firearm, except a peace officer in the performance of his or her duties
• accepting directly, or indirectly anything of economic value, including reimbursement of costs, for the purpose of transporting a voter to an early voting location or polling place, or for driving or being in charge of any motor vehicle being used for such purpose (bus, taxi or licensed transportation are exempt)

View the Louisiana Election Code, Title 18 of Louisiana's revised statutes.

Federal law prohibits:

• No person, whether acting under color of law or otherwise, shall intimidate, threaten, or coerce, or attempt to intimidate, threaten, or coerce any person for voting or attempting to vote, or intimidate, threaten, or coerce, or attempt to intimidate, threaten, or coerce any person for urging or aiding any person to vote or attempt to vote, or intimidate, threaten, or coerce any person for exercising any powers or duties under federal law.
• Knowingly and willfully depriving, defrauding, or attempting to deprive or defraud the residents of Louisiana of a fair and impartially conducted election process by the procurement, casting, or tabulation of ballots that are known by the person to be materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent under the laws of the State of Louisiana in any election for federal office.
• Conspiring to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate any person in the free exercise or enjoyment of the right to vote or because of their having so exercised the right to vote.​
  
  

Yes, a law enforcement officer may be used by a registrar of voters to maintain order at any location where early voting is conducted. A law enforcement officer may not interfere with the conduct of the election, the voters, or the election officials.

No, not even for a concealed carry permit.  The only exception is for a peace officer as defined by La R.S. 40:2402(3)(a) in the performance of their official duties.

To report fraud in a federal election, contact the nearest office of the FBI or your local U.S. Attorney's office. Additionally, you may contact the Election Integrity Division toll-free at 800.722.5305, the Elections Division toll-free at 800.883.2805.

To report a federal violation under The Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibits racial or language minority discrimination in voting, contact:

Chief, Voting Section, Civil Rights Division
Room 7254-NWB
Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20530

toll-free 800.253.3931
202.307.2767

To make a complaint under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, contact: Voting Rights Division, Department of Justice toll-free 800.514.0301 (option 7)

To file a notarized written complaint under the Help America Vote Act, contact: Elections Division toll-free at 800.883.2805.

To report voting fraud, contact the Elections Division toll-free at 800.883.2805 or contact the nearest office of the FBI or your local U.S. Attorney's office.

To file a written notarized complaint with the Elections Division of the Louisiana Department of State, contact:

Commissioner of Elections
Department of State
P.O. Box 94125
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9125

If you have further questions about voting early, please call your parish registrar of voters.