Vote Provisionally

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Vote Provisionally

Provisional voting provides a fail-safe procedure for voting in federal elections when any person appears to vote and is not listed as an eligible voter. You must certify in writing on the ballot that you are a registered voter in the parish and are eligible to vote in the election for federal office before voting.

Provisional voting is not convenience voting, whereby you may appear anywhere in the state and vote and have your vote count.

You must be a registered voter in the parish where you vote and eligible to vote in the election for federal office for the provisional ballot to be counted. Therefore, it is recommended that you vote in the precinct and parish where you are registered to vote.

If you are in the parish where you are registered to vote and you are voting at the wrong precinct, you may vote a paper provisional ballot for federal offices only after certifying in writing on the ballot that you are eligible to vote. You will not be permitted to vote on the voting machine for state, local or municipal offices; propositions; or state constitutional amendments and therefore, it is recommended that you go to your precinct so that you may vote on all candidates and questions.

If you are in a precinct that is not in the parish where you are registered to vote, you may vote a paper provisional ballot for federal offices only after certifying in writing on the ballot that you are eligible to vote. You will not be permitted to vote on the voting machine for state, local or municipal offices; propositions; or constitutional amendments and therefore it is recommended that you go to your precinct in your parish so that you may vote on all candidates and questions.

If you are not registered to vote in Louisiana, and you enter a precinct to vote, you may vote a paper provisional ballot for federal offices only after certifying in writing on the ballot that you are eligible to vote. You will not be permitted to vote on the voting machine for state, local or municipal offices; propositions; or state constitutional amendments.

If you cast a paper provisional ballot for federal offices only, your provisional ballot may or may not be counted. You must be a registered voter in the parish where you vote and eligible to vote in the election for federal office for your vote to be counted. If you cast a provisional ballot for a U.S. representative, you must be a registered voter in that congressional district.

Provisional Ballot Status

Any voter who casts a provisional ballot in an election, within the past 27 months, can check if it was counted by accessing the provisional voter search. Voters should wait at least seven days after an election to determine the status of their provisional ballot. For prior federal election or if you cannot find your name in the provisional voter search, contact the Louisiana Secretary of State's Elections Division at 800.883.2805. When calling, please have available the provisional ballot number provided at the polling place.

About the Law

On Oct. 29, 2002, the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) was signed into law. The legislation aims to improve the administration of elections in the U.S., and part of the law deals with provisional voting. Legislation was passed in the 2003 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature to place Louisiana in compliance with the provisional voting requirements of HAVA. Act 423 of 2003 Regular Legislative Session implements provisional voting in Louisiana only in elections for federal office. Read more about HAVA and other federal laws.

Provisional Ballot Statistics

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