ELECTION NEWS 11-2-08 La. Senate Race; 4th Cong Dist Runoffs Cause Confusion Among Voters
Sunday, Nov 02, 2008 4:15pm

SHREVEPORT, LA (By: Tom Pace, Executive Editor, Talk of the Town) BREAKING: 2008 VOTER NEWS: 6pm 11-2-08 Election Day, 2008 looms large on the horizon, just 2 days away ‘til November 4^th, and possibly the biggest voter turnout ever in the nation’s history.

Hoping to avoid any confusion about who is eligible to vote in the federal open and closed primaries on this Tuesday’s ballot, Caddo Registrar of Voters Ernie Roberson offers some important news for area voters. Listen to Roberson’s interview with Tom Pace from the “Talk of the Town” below.

In addition to the federal Presidential election, Roberson says, there will also be two other federal elections: the U.S. Senate general election, and the 4th District Congressional Party Runoffs to replace our retiring Congressman, Jim McCrery.

Here is some further explanation on how the Senate and Congressional race are being structured using the open primary for Senate and a closed primary for Congress.

U.S. SENATE- Open Primary- you can cross party lines and vote for whomever you chose regardless of party or non-affiliation with a party. Just like all the local races it is an open primary. All voters are eligible to vote in this contest and for whomever they please to support.

U.S. CONGRESS– In this contest registered Republicans can only vote on the Republican candidates, because we are still in the runoff stage of this Closed Primary election due to Hurricane Gustav.

Meanwhile, Registered Democrats can only vote on the Democratic party candidates. The Louisiana Democratic party chose to allow voters who are no party, other party and non affiliated voters to vote in their primary.

There will also be a sign at each polling place explaining how this choice works for voters. This is the only “closed” primary or runoff election on the ballot. You will probably have your party affiliation confirmed by the poll commissioners so that the voting machine can be set for your choice of party affiliation.

You can check your party affiliation on the Registrar’s Website:  www.CaddoVoter.org. Go to Register to Vote  and scroll down to Polling Place Locator and click on that choice. You will need your name as registered and your date of birth. You can also find a map showing your polling place location.

Make sure you write down the number of your precinct as there may be multiple precincts at one polling place. You do not want to waste an hour in the wrong line to vote. This IS your responsibility as a voter; know where to vote and what your precinct number is on election day. This information is on your voter identification card.

All local races on the ballot are open primary and you can cross party lines to vote on the candidate of your choice.

SHREVEPORT, LA (By: Tom Pace, Executive Editor, Talk of the Town) BREAKING: CADDO VOTING NEWS 9pm 10-29-08  Caddo Registrar of Voters Ernie Roberson says he was “overwhelmed” with the record early voting turnout at his office in downtown Shreveport, La. from Oct. 21-28.
 
Just one day after the record 5,019 early Caddo voters cast their ballots, Roberson told Tom Pace from the “Talk of the Town” that his staff had mailed out another 2,900-plus absentee ballots for the upcoming November 4th election.

Click here to listen to Roberson’s audio podcast with Tom Pace.

Roberson said many times during the 12 and ½ hour days, the line of early voters snaked up Marshall Street, on around the corner to Texas Street: that equalled about 150 folks having to wait some two and a half hours, just to cast a ballot that took only one minute to register their vote.

To help voters with the latest election information-at-a-glance, Roberson suggests that they log on to his new website, now available 24/7 at www.CaddoVoter.org.

Now, the Next Vote is the REALLY BIG ONE: November 4th, 2008.  Roberson predicts that a record number of Caddo voters (possibly 75% or more) will go the polls this coming Tuesday.  

Statewide, all polling locations will be open 6am-8pm.  Ernie Roberson reminds everyone to bring their identification, and be prepared to wait possibly up to an hour to vote.

EARLY VOTING FOR THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION– Tuesday, November 4th Election
 
Early voting for registered voters in Caddo Parish will be held at the Registrar of Voters office, 525 Marshall, Suite 103  in downtown Shreveport across from the courthouse during the following dates and times: Tuesday, Oct. 21 – Saturday, Oct. 25 (closed Sunday, Oct. 26) Monday, Oct. 27- Tuesday, Oct. 28 from 8:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. each day. Voters should be prepared to stand in line for an hour or more, bring water, if necessary and handicapped voters should notify the Registrar’s staff upon arrival. Voters should bring proof of identity such as a driver’s license, governmental i.d., etc.
 
Voters who will not be in the parish during early voting or on election day may request an absentee ballot by mail. Go to www.sos.louisiana.gov and print off the appropriate form. It can be delivered, mailed or faxed to the Registrar’s office.
 
Voters who are 65 years old or older or who are handicapped and have a mobility impairment card or other governmental certification may request an absentee ballot by mail with a copy of the certification. This program will enroll those voters to receive ballots by mail until they request to be removed from the program.
 
College students who are rquesting a ballot by mail should also include a copy of their student i.d. or fee receipt from their college to aid in processing.

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION NEWS– Tuesday, November 4th- Polls Open 6:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.

The Presidential election and U.S. Senate election are both OPEN PRIMARY elections where you can cross party lines to vote for the candidate of your choice. However, Louisiana did return to closed primaries for the Congressional runoffs to be held at the same time as the Presidential and US Senate election. This was necessitated by the postponed Sept. 6th election due to Hurricane Gustav. The Democratic and Republican party primaries and runoffs are CLOSED party elections.

Congressional election information- In the closed party runoffs for Congress, registered Republicans can ONLY vote for Republican candidates and registered Democrats can only vote for Democratic party candidates. The Democrats are also allowing No party, Other party and unaffiliated party voters to vote in the Democratic party primary. ‘Independents’ are classified as Other Party voters in Louisiana and are eligible to vote in the Democratic party runoff, too. These decisions were made by the political parties and you should contact them to express your opinion.

ALL local elections are OPEN PRIMARY and you can cross party lines in those elections.

If you feel that your party information is incorrect at either the polls or during early voting, you should stop BEFORE you cast your ballot and notify a poll worker. This information can be checked on the precinct register. You can also find this information at www.sos.louisiana.gov and click on Poll Locator for your voter information including your polling place location and map.