Louisiana

Election Day: 

Election Day voting hours are from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. CST on all Saturday elections and 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. CST on all Tuesday elections.  A voter in line by 8:00 p.m. CST has the right to vote.

Early Voting:

Voters who want to vote early for any election may do so in person at designated locations in their parish from 14 to seven days prior to any scheduled election. When one or more state holidays fall within an early voting period, the first day for early voting will begin 15 days prior to the election.

For presidential elections, the early voting period is from 18 to seven days before the election (except Sundays and legal holidays). When one or more state holidays fall within that early voting period, the first day for early voting will begin 19 days prior to the election.

Absentee Voting:

Applications for mail ballots must be received by 4:30 p.m. Central time on the fourth day before Election Day.  The registrar will mail the voter an absentee ballot.  The ballot must be received by the parish registrar by 4:30 p.m. Central time the day before Election Day.

You can find your polling place by using the Louisiana Voter Portal; downloading the free GeauxVote app to your smartphone or tablet; visiting GeauxVote; calling your parish Registrar of Voters Office; or viewing your polling location on your voter information card received by mail from your registrar of voters.

Note: Polling places change due to being unavailable or due to an emergency. Please check to make sure you go to the correct polling place on Election Day.

Registration Deadlines

• For registration deadlines, see How to Register below.

How to Check Your Registration: Voters can determine whether they are registered to vote at the following link: Am I Registered?.

You are eligible to vote in Louisiana if you:

• Are a U.S. citizen
• Are at least 18 years old by Election Day
• Reside in Louisiana and the parish in which you want to vote

You are NOT eligible to vote in Louisiana if:

• You have been legally declared “mentally incompetent” by a court or partial interdiction with suspension of voting rights
• You are in prison or jail for a felony conviction

Restorative Requirements

• After five (5) years on probation or parole or the completion of your full sentence, including probation or parole, whichever comes first, your right to vote is restored, even if you are on parole or probation.

You may preregister to vote in Louisiana

• at the age 17 (16 if registering in person at the registrar of voters or at the office of motor vehicles)

How to register 

• Louisiana Gubernatorial Primary Election and State Constitution Amendment Ballot
  • Apply Online: Online by Sat Sep 23, 2023
  • Submit a Printed Application: Postmarked by Wed Sep 13, 2023
  • In-Person, Received by Wed Sep 13, 2023

You can register to vote using the GeauxVote Online Registration System. The online voter registration form is available here. You can also register at many government offices, as well as your parish registrar of voters office.

Residency Requirements: If registering in person at a parish Registrar of Voters Office, you are required to prove age, residency and identity. You must submit your current Louisiana driver’s license, if you have one, or your birth certificate or other documentation which reasonably and sufficiently establishes your identity, age and residency. If you have no driver’s license, special Louisiana ID or social security number, you may provide a picture ID, a utility bill, payroll check or government document that includes your name and address.

If registering at a mandated site (government services site), no further proof of identification is required other than whatever proof is required for services received that you have applied for at the public agency.

You must register with a residence address in the parish with a street or rural route address. Post office box addresses and mail center boxes do not qualify.

If You Want to Vote Absentee, requests may be made:

• In-Person
• By Mail
• By Fax
• By Email
• Online

Absentee Ballots may be returned:

• In-Person
• By Mail
• By Fax

Louisiana Gubernatorial Primary Election and State Constitution Amendment Ballot

Ballot Request:

• Received by Tue Oct 10, 2023 4:30PM CDT

Ballot Return:

• Received by Fri Oct 13, 2023 4:30PM CDT

Early Voting:

• Early Voting from Sat Sep 30, 2023 8:30AM CDT to Sat Oct 7, 2023 6:00PM CDT

The following applications for absentee ballots are available:

General Application for Absentee by Mail Ballot  

Disabled Application for Absentee by Mail Ballot 

Military or Overseas Application for Absentee by Mail Ballot

You must have one of the listed reasons to qualify for a mail ballot:

• military or overseas citizens;
• senior citizens (65+);
• voters with disabilities;
• students & professors;
• religious clergy;
• voters temporarily absent during early voting and election day;
• voters who moved to a new parish more than 100 miles from former residence within 30 days of election;
• persons involuntarily confined to an institution;
• sequestered jurors;
• voters hospitalized or who expect to be hospitalized during early voting and election day;
• voters employed upon state waters
• voters incarcerated for non-felony with sheriff’s certification; and
• participants in the state’s address confidentiality program.

Absentee ballots can be returned in several ways:

• By Mail (includes commercial carrier).
• By Fax: Upon request submitted to the registrar of voter.
• By Hand Delivery: A voter or immediate family member of the voter may deliver the ballot to the registrar of voters. A signed statement must be completed upon delivery by anyone other than the voter, certifying their relationship to the voter. No person except the immediate family of the voter shall hand deliver more than one marked ballot per election to the registrar of voters.

Note: There are emergency provisions in place for Military, Overseas, and hospitalized voters to return ballots. Contact the registrar of voters for additional information.
Early Voting Location Information: A detailed list of early voting locations in your parish can be found when you login to the voter portal. A complete list of early voting locations for the entire state is available here.

Voter Registration

To register to vote in Louisiana you should provide one of the following:

• Your Louisiana Driver’s License Number
• Louisiana Special ID Card Number
• Last Four Digits of your Social Security Number

If you do not have any of these IDs, you can provide a copy of one of the following with your registration application:

• Current and Valid Photo ID
• Government Issued Document that shows your current name and address
• Government Check
• Bank Statement
• Paycheck that Shows your Current Name and Address
• Current Utility Bill

You can alternatively provide one of these documents when you vote to complete your registration. If you do not have one of these forms of ID and need help getting ID, go to www.voteriders.org.

Voting In-Person

If you are registered to vote in Louisiana, you are required to show ID to vote; or, if you do not have an accepted ID you may instead sign an affidavit. Accepted forms of ID include:

• Valid Louisiana Driver’s License
• Louisiana Special ID Card
• Other generally recognized picture identification card that contains the name and signature of voter

If you do not have one of the Louisiana valid IDs and need help getting ID, go to www.voteriders.org.

If you are registered to vote in Louisiana, you are required to show ID to vote; or, if you do not have an accepted ID you may instead sign an affidavit. 

Voters who mail in their absentee ballot are not required to provide any additional form of identification, but must sign the envelope and have a witness sign the envelope.

All registered voters may obtain a free Louisiana special identification card by presenting a voter information card to the Office of Motor Vehicles.

A voter can cast a vote by completing a Voter Identification Affidavit if no photo ID is available. However, the vote is subject to challenge.

Moving within the Same Precinct:

Go to your regular polling location.  You should ask for, and fill out, an address confirmation card.  You can cast a regular ballot. 

Moving within the Same Parish:

You can still vote at your old polling place by regular ballot.  You should ask for, and fill out, an address confirmation card; this change will take effect after the general election.  If you appear on the “inactive voter list,” you may need to complete an address confirmation card, which affirms your new address.

Moving Between Parishes:

You must re-register when you move to a new parish.  You can still vote at your old polling place by regular ballot, if you moved within the last three months.  You should ask for, and fill out, an address confirmation card; this change will take effect after the general election.  If you appear on the “inactive voter list,” you may need to complete an address confirmation card, which affirms your new address and that you moved within the last three months. 

If the move was over three months ago, you must re-register before the registration deadline.

Voting Military

Service members and their dependents may register and request a ballot using the federal voter registration/ballot request form (“FPCA”). You will have the following identification options when completing the form:

• U.S. State or Territory or District Issued ID
• Option to Indicate that you do not have the Requested ID
• Last 4 Digits of your Social Security Number

Voting Overseas

U.S. citizens living overseas may register and request a ballot using the overseas voter registration/ballot request form. You will have the following identification options when completing the form:

• Option to Indicate that you do not have the Requested ID
• Last 4 Digits of your Social Security Number
• U.S. State or Territory or District Issued ID

You may register to vote or change your registration online or print an application to register to vote and return it by mail or fax to your parish registrar of voters. Email a request for a registration application to the registrar of voters of the parish where you last resided prior to military service or going overseas. Return it by mail or fax it to your parish registrar of voters.

Request an Absentee Ballot Online:

Registered voters may submit a request for an absentee ballot electronically by logging in to the Louisiana Voter Portal and do the following: 

• click the “Search By Voter” button;
• fill out the requested information and click “Submit” button;
• click the “Request Absentee Ballot” link found in the right hand column of the Quick Links.

The person logged in to the voter portal may only request an absentee ballot for themselves. If you elect to receive your ballot electronically, you will be required to submit your email address.

Request an Absentee Ballot by Mail or Fax: Print an application for absentee ballot for military and overseas citizens, complete it and mail, fax or email it to your parish registrar of voters.

Military and overseas citizen’s requests for absentee ballots must be received by the parish registrar of voters no later than 4:30 p.m. CST one day prior to the scheduled election date.   

Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot: You may complete the Louisiana FPCA Application online. You must have a valid Louisiana driver’s license number or Louisiana special ID card and an address in Louisiana where you last resided to submit electronically. If a Louisiana driver’s license number or Louisiana Special ID Card number has not been issued, you may complete the online form, print the form and send by mail to the parish registrar of voters.

You may also view the Federal Voting Assistance Program website to complete the FPCA form and send by mail to the parish registrar of voters.

To track your request for an absentee ballot or the status of returned ballots, log in to the voter portal and click the ‘Ballot Information’ tab.

The deadline for returning voted ballots to the registrar of voters office for an election are:

• by 8 p.m. on election day for military personnel;
• by 8 p.m. on election day for U.S. citizens residing outside the U.S.; or
• by 4:30 p.m. on the day before election day for all others.

A misdemeanor conviction does not disqualify a person from voting in Louisiana. 

If you have been convicted of a felony, you can vote if you are no longer under an order of imprisonment (including probation, suspended sentences, and parole) OR (a) you have not been incarcerated within the last five years (even if you are still under an order of imprisonment, i.e. on probation or parole) and (b) the order of imprisonment is not related to a felony conviction for election fraud or certain other election offenses.  

To restore your right to vote after a felony conviction, you must appear in person at the registrar of voters office, complete a voter registration application, and provide documentation from the appropriate correction official to prove that you have completed your probation and/or parole or that you have not been incarcerated within the last five years and are not under an order of imprisonment.