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Voting Resources - Louisiana

The right to vote is crucial, especially for social workers who must stay informed about candidates and their positions, as these elected officials make decisions that directly affect the profession, including funding for social work programs. Social workers are uniquely positioned to empower their clients by helping them register to vote and stay informed about upcoming elections, ensuring their voices are heard.

2024 Election Information

Dates & Deadlines
2024 General Elections important dates and deadlines:

October 7th: In person and mail in registration deadline
October 15th: Online registration deadline
October 18th: Early voting begins
October 29th: Early voting ends
November 1st: Absentee request ballot (received by 4:30pm) deadline
November 4th : Absentee ballot returned by mail and in person (received by 4:30pm) deadline
November 5th: In person voting

See more important election dates for 2024-2025.

Important Tips for Voters

Do you need to register to vote or update your registration information? See how to register here and how to update registration information here.
If you are unsure if you are registered, check here to find out!
Sample ballots are populated three weeks prior to each election and can be found here.
When voting in person be sure to bring an approved form of I.D., to see what forms of I.D. are accepted see more details here.
There are multiple way to vote, see the following links to learn more about each way:

General Voting Resources

Learn where your voter precinct is here and learn where the early voting locations are here.

NASW is hosting a webinar for student social workers, “Prepping for the 2024 Elections: What Social Work Students Can Do” on October 17, 2024! Find registration information here.

You can contact your representatives to show support or advocate for change, find who represents you here!

Find your parishes registrar of voter’s information here. If you have any questions about voting or elections you can contact them to get more details.

Louisiana has programs in place to assist those with disabilities in participating in voting, for more details on these programs see here.

To see more resources on how to increase voter participation see NASW’s Increasing Voter Participation page.

To learn more about NASW-LA’s legislative priorities see this webpage for more details.

If you are interested in becoming more involved during elections there are a few ways you can do so, see the following links for more details:

There are organizations in Louisiana that are dedicated to promoting education about voting and empowering citizens to participate in voting, to learn more see the following links:

League of Women Voters of Louisiana - A nonpartisan organization that has been dedicated since 1920 to encouraging voters to being informed and active participants in government
Council for a Better Louisiana – A nonpartisan organization founded in 1962 with a mission to improve the quality of life for the citizens of Louisiana through educating citizen on public policy and advocating for change.

NASW-LA Voting Guide

The NASW-LA Voting Guide has everything social workers need to stay informed this election season! Learn who is on the ballot, where to vote, and how to get involved, including working at the polls. The guide includes important dates for the upcoming presidential and general elections, local resources for state and community elections, and educational materials tailored for social workers. Download the guide now!

Social Work Votes 2024! Guide

Check out the Social Work Votes 2024! guide for key information and resources on how social workers can make an impact at the polls. Created by Crystal Rommen, Victoria Highland, Rene Agular, and Grace Chihuri. Download the guide now!

Advocacy to Action: Social Workers Leading Nonpartisan

Join NASW Louisiana and Vot-ER for "Advocacy to Action: Social Workers Leading Nonpartisan Voter Registration," an interactive webinar designed to empower social workers to use their trusted voice in encouraging voter registration. Explore the vital connection between voting and health, learn how civic participation can impact overall well-being, and access resources for nonpartisan voter registration. Together, let’s work towards building a healthier democracy—one vote at a time! Register now at https://bit.ly/NASWLA_VotER

Voter accessibility

There are programs for voters with disabilities and senior citizens and nursing home residents. Voters with disabilities and senior citizens qualify for an automatic absentee ballot program. Those in nursing homes may enroll in a program to vote early where the registrars of voters will visit their nursing home one week before early voting begins to let them cast their ballots. To see more information on the applications and requirements of these programs see this webpage.
Louisiana law requires all polling places to meet minimum compliance standards for individuals with special needs. To learn more about these standard see here.
To learn more about other accommodations that are available at voting locations in Louisiana here.

Justice involved

If someone has been on probation or parole for a continuous five year period they are able to regain their voting rights even if they are still on probation or parole at the time.
The completion of one’s full sentences including probation of parole makes them eligible to participate in voting.
To learn more about voting as a justice involved or formerly justice involved person in Louisiana see here.

Information for LGBTQ+

The American Civil Liberties Union Louisiana has an information page for voting while trans in Louisiana with a guide for voters and poll commissioners. To learn more about voting while trans in Louisiana see their website here.
The Humans Rights Campaign Louisiana is dedicated to fighting for the rights of the LGBTQ+ community through advocating for change at the local and state levels. To learn more about how to get involved see more here.

Homelessness

Louisiana does require a residence address to register to vote but those experiencing homelessness can use a shelter or any street corner, park, or public place as their residence.
An I.D. is required for voting in Louisiana but if you do not have one there are alternative options, see here to learn more.

Military and Overseas

The Military and Overseas Voter Act was passed in 2009 providing updated procedures for voting by military and overseas citizens. The Louisiana legislature passed Act 624 to implement the MOVE Act for Louisiana’s military and overseas citizen and then amended the law with Act 195 to allow for greater flexibility for the population to vote cast ballots. To learn more about the MOVE Act see here, to learn more about the amendment see here.
Military and overseas citizens request for absentee ballots needs to be received by the parish registrars of voters no later than 4:30pm one day prior to the scheduled election day. To learn more about how to request absentee ballots see here.