2008 Election Information

League of Women Voters^®
of New Orleans

Important Information. 2008 Inactive Voters List. How to Vote Absentee. Early Voting in Person. Voting on Election Day. Open and Closed Primary Descriptions.

Important Information

Click Here to go to the Elections Home Page of the Secretary of State.
Click Here to find your polling site and ballot sample for your ward/precinct.
Click Here for Orleans Parish District/Ward/Precinct Maps.
Click Here for PAR's analysis of November 4, 2008 constitutional amendments.

2008 Inactive Voters List

2008 ORLEANS PARISH INACTIVE VOTERS LIST
HOW TO KEEP YOUR REGISTRATION ACTIVE
ANY VOTER CAN CHECK THE INACTIVE VOTERS LIST FOR THEIR NAME BY CALLING 1-800-883-2805.
NO NAMES WILL BE REMOVED FROM THE LIST UNTIL DECEMBER 2010.
The Inactive Voters List contains the names of those voters who have not voted in any Orleans Parish election in the past 2 federal election cycles. This list is compiled annually to maintain an accurate list of registered voters. An address confirmation card was sent to each inactive voter. If there was no response, the name appeared on the Inactive List.
This the first Inactive List that would include any voter displaced by the Katrina flood. This does not cancel any voter's right to vote in Orleans Parish until December 2010.
A voter may remove their name from the list by either: 1) voting in any election in Orleans Parish during the next two years, or 2) correcting or verifying their address on the registration. A voter may check their status by calling 1-800-883-2805.
If a voter has registered to vote in another Louisiana parish or another state, they are no longer eligible to vote in Orleans Parish. If a voter wishes to reinstate their right to vote in Orleans Parish, they must re-register.

How to Vote Absentee by Mail

Absentee ballots may only be obtained from the Orleans Parish Registrar of Voters Office. You may request a ballot by mail or by fax. Absentee ballots must be received by the Registrar of Voters by the close of the business day the day prior to the scheduled election. Click Here to download an Absentee Ballot request form.
The request must include the voter's name, address of registration, date of birth, Social Security number, the mailing address, the reason the person is unable to vote in person and, most important, the voter's signature as it appears on the rolls.
If you have registered to vote by mail and have not voted in a prior election, you must vote in person, either during an early voting period or on a regular election day in order to be eligible to cast an absentee ballot by mail.
Handicapped and housebound citizens can apply for regular absentee voting by by contacting the Registrar of Voter's Office and requesting the forms for the Housebound Program be sent by mail. The forms must be signed by a doctor and returned to the Registrar's Office in City Hall.
Citizens that return a ballot by fax waive their right to privacy.

Orleans Parish Registrar of Voters
City Hall, Rm. 1W23
1300 Perdido St.
New Orleans, LA 70112
Phone: 1-504-658-8300
Fax: 1-504-658-8316

Early Voting in Person

Early voting in Person is available 14 to 7 days prior to a set election, excluding Sunday. This period covers two Saturdays to accommodate out of town or working citizens. The Registrar's office is open from 8:30 am to 6:00 pm. This is an option for persons who know they will be out of town on election day or for personal reasons they do not wish to visit their polling site. Early voting in person is available at the Orleans Parish Registrar of Voters Office in City Hall at 1300 Perdido Street, Rm. 1W23.
Residents of the Westbank may vote early at the Registrar's satellite office at the Algiers Courthouse at 225 Morgan Street.
You must bring a Louisiana Driver's License, Louisiana Special ID or other official picture ID when you vote early in person. If you do not have a picture be prepared to bring other proof of residency such as a utililty bill and be prepared to fill out an affidavit.

Voting on Election Day

POLLS WILL BE OPEN 6:00 AM UNTIL 8:00 PM.
Voters that are in line to vote at 8:00 pm will be allowed to cast their ballots.
Voters must provide one of the following: A Louisiana driver's license, a Louisiana identification card or any other generally recognized picture ID. If you do not have a picture ID, then you may present any other identification card plus further information such as a utility bill and a completed Voter Identification Affidavit.
Only one person at a time is allowed in the voting booth. If you are unable to read, an election official may assist you. If you are unable to vote without assistance because of a physical handicap, you must bring a physician's certificate with you or have one on file.
Disabled voters may go to the front of the line at their polling place.
Click Here to learn your polling site for your address.

Open and Closed Primary Descriptions

THE LOUISIANA PRIMARY SYSTEM
PARTY DESIGNATION:
The State of Louisiana recognizes five political parties: Democrat, Republican, Green, Libertarian and Reform. When a citizen registers to vote, his federal primary participation is determined by the party he listed in his original registration. If a voter wishes to change his party designation, he must change his voter registration 30 days prior to the election. If a voter does not list any of the five recognized parties, he is an unaffiliated voter. Unaffiliated voters are not registered with a party or registered with a non-recognized party.
CLOSED FEDERAL ELECTION PRIMARIES:
Closed primary elections to select party candidates eligible to run in the general elections are held for the U.S. President, our U.S. Senators and all of our representatives to the U.S. Congress. Primaries for the five recognized parties are automatically open to unaffiliated voters unless the party specifically prohibits unaffiliated voters from participating in their primary. At this time only the Republican Party has closed their primary. Therefore, only registered Republicans can vote in the Republican primary. Primaries, if any, for the other four recognized parties are open to unaffiliated voters. You may vote in only one primary.
As a practical matter, at this time, only the Republican and Democrat parties hold primaries. As a result, in the general elections, there can be unaffiliated candidates and candidates from the Green, Libertarian and Reform parties on the ballot who did not have primaries. A voter is not restricted by party in the general federal elections; they may vote for any candidate.
OPEN LOCAL AND STATE PRIMARIES:
The primaries for local and state elections are open to all registered voters and are held in October. There are no restrictions by party designations, meaning a voter may vote for any candidate on his local or state ballot. If a single local or state candidate wins by majority vote (50% plus 1 vote) in a primary, he will be considered the winner and there will be no general election for that office. If there is no majority winner, the two local or state candidates with the highest number of votes will be in a run-off in the general election in November. In the open system, the two run-off candidates can be from the same political party.
For federal congressional offices (U.S. Senate and U.S. Representative), if there is a single candidate from a recognized party that did not hold a primary (like a Green candidate), that candidate is on the general election ballot. Also, all unaffiliated candidates are on the general election ballot. For federal congressional offices only, a plurality vote wins the election (highest number of votes).

Comments, suggestions, questions? Contact our webmaster. Last revised: September 2, 2010 11:51 PDT.