LOUISIANA

Voter Registration Deadline: For applications submitted online, 20 days before Election Day. For paper or mail-in applications, 30 days before Election Day.

More information regarding important dates and deadlines for municipal, state, and federal elections is available at: https://www.sos.la.gov/ElectionsAndVoting/GetElectionInformation/SearchElectionDates/Pages/default.aspx

2026 Election Information

Special Legislative General / Special Primary (69^th State Representative District Only): March 14, 2026

• Voter Registration Deadline: February 11, 2026 (by mail or in person), February 21, 2026 (online)
• Mail-in Ballot Application Deadline: March 10, 2026
• Early Voting Period: February 28, 2026 through March 7, 2026

Party Primary / Municipal Primary: May 16, 2026

• Voter Registration Deadline: April 15, 2026 (by mail or in person), April 25, 2026 (online)
• Mail-in Ballot Application Deadline: May 12, 2026
• Early Voting Period: May 2, 2026 through May 9, 2026

2^nd Party Primary / Municipal General: June 27, 2026

• Voter Registration Deadline: May 27, 2026 (by mail or in person), June 6, 2026 (online)
• Mail-in Ballot Application Deadline: June 23, 2026
• Early Voting Period: June 13, 2026 through June 20, 2026

Congressional General / Open Primary: November 3, 2026

• Voter Registration Deadline: October 5, 2026 (by mail or in person), October 13, 2026 (online)
• Mail-in Ballot Application Deadline: October 30, 2026
• Early Voting Period: October 20, 2026 through October 27, 2026

Open General: December 12, 2026

• Voter Registration Deadline: November 12, 2026 (by mail or in person), November 21, 2026 (online)
• Mail-in Ballot Application Deadline: December 8, 2026
• Early Voting Period: November 28, 2026 through December 5, 2026

More information regarding important dates and deadlines is available at https://www.sos.la.gov/ElectionsAndVoting/PublishedDocuments/ElectionsCalendar2026.pdf and https://www.sos.la.gov/ElectionsAndVoting/GetElectionInformation/Pages/default.aspx.

More election information at:

www.geauxvote.com

Online voter registration available at:

http://www.sos.la.gov/ElectionsAndVoting/Pages/OnlineVoterRegistration.aspx

Mail-in voter registration form available at:

https://www.sos.la.gov/ElectionsAndVoting/PublishedDocuments/ApplicationToRegisterToVote.pdf

Students have a decision about where to register to vote.

You have a right to register to vote at the address you consider the place where you live, whether that is your family’s home or the place where you attend school. You should update your registration anytime this home address changes.

You may only be registered and vote in one location.

In Louisiana, 16- and 17-year-olds may pre-register to vote, though they may not vote in any election until they are at least 18 years old. 16-year-olds may only register in person at the Registrar of Voters Office or a Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles locations. For more information on pre-registration, visit: https://www.sos.la.gov/ElectionsAndVoting/RegisterToVote/Pages/default.aspx

Online Registration: To register to vote through the GeauxVote Online Registration System, you must have a Louisiana driver’s license or special ID card. Please note a Louisiana Mobility Impaired card is not an acceptable form of identification since it does not contain a signature.

Paper or By Mail Registration:  Louisiana’s voter registration form asks for your Louisiana driver’s license or ID card number, or your Social Security number. Be sure to provide one of these numbers on your registration application.

Louisiana law requires in-person voters to present photo ID bearing their name and signature, though voters who lack acceptable ID may sign a Voter Identification Affidavit. Acceptable forms of photo ID include:

• Louisiana driver’s license;
• Louisiana special identification card;
• LA Wallet digital driver’s license;
• Military ID that contains the voter’s name and photograph; or
• Another generally recognized picture ID card that contains the voter’s name and signature.

Make a plan. Look up your voting site and hours at:

https://voterportal.sos.la.gov/

By Mail: Louisiana requires an excuse to vote by mail. Voters may cast a ballot by mail if they:

• Are a student, instructor, or professor living outside their parish of registration;
• Are 65 years of age or older;
• Are or expect to be temporarily outside of Louisiana or their parish during the early voting period and on Election Day;
• Work or expect to be offshore during the early voting period and on Election Day;
• Have a physical disability;
• Are a member of the clergy assigned outside their parish of registration, or the spouse/dependent thereof;
• Have moved more than 100 miles from the parish of their former residence after the registration books close (30 days prior to an election);
• Are involuntarily confined in an institution for mental treatment outside their parish of registration and have not judicially been declared incompetent;
• Expect to be hospitalized on Election Day and did not have knowledge of the hospitalization until after the early voting period has ended, or were hospitalized or confined to their bed during early voting and expect to remain hospitalized or confined to their bed on Election Day;
• Are or expect to be incarcerated and are not confined pursuant to a felony conviction;
• Are a participant in the Secretary of State’s Address Confidentiality Program; or
• Will be sequestered on the day of the election for jury duty.

You may request a ballot online if you possess a Louisiana driver’s license or ID card, or submit an application by mail to your parish registrar of voters. If this is your first time voting in Louisiana and you are voting by mail because you are student attending school outside your parish of registration, be sure to include a copy of your student ID or a fee bill.

• Mail-in Ballot Application Deadline: The deadline to request a mail-in ballot is 4:30 p.m. on the 4th day before Election Day.
• Completed Mail Ballot Return Deadline: Completed vote-by-mail ballots must be returned and received by the parish registrar of voters by 4:30 p.m. on the day before Election Day.

Voters who have a physical disability or who are homebound and require assistance to vote may apply for an absentee ballot using the Disabled Application for Absentee By Mail Ballot. If you qualify to vote under this excuse, you will need to submit proof of disability and, if you submit your request by mail, a copy of a photo ID or the names and addresses for two people who reside in your precinct and who could make an oath, if required, that you have a physical disability. 

More information about mail-in voting is available on the Secretary of State’s website at: https://www.sos.la.gov/ElectionsAndVoting/Vote/VoteByMail/Pages/default.aspx.

Early In Person: Any registered voter may vote early in person. Early voting begins 14 days before Election Day and ends 7 days before Election Day for all elections except presidential elections; early voting in presidential elections begins 18 days before Election Day. You may vote early at designated location from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., excluding Sundays.

All early voting locations can be found online before each election at: https://voterportal.sos.la.gov/EarlyVoting.

Election Day: Voting sites will be open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day for elections occurring on Tuesdays. For Saturday elections, voting sites will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. If you are in line by close of polls, then you have a right to vote.

Does Registering to Vote Affect My Federal Financial Aid?

Where you register to vote will not affect federal financial aid such as Pell Grants, Perkins or Stafford loans, or your dependency status for FAFSA.

Does Registering to Vote Affect My Status as a Dependent on My Parents’ Taxes?

Being registered to vote at a different address from your parents does not prevent them from claiming you as a dependent on their taxes.

Does Registering to Vote Impact My Tuition Status?

Being deemed out-of-state for tuition purposes does not prevent you from choosing to register to vote in your campus community.

Will Registering to Vote in Louisiana Affect My Driver’s License or Car Registration?

Registering to vote in Louisiana does not necessarily affect your driver’s license or car registration. However, as a new resident of Louisiana, you may be required to make changes to your driver’s license or car registration regardless of whether you register to vote there. You may wish to contact the Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles.