By JIM BUTLER
Rules of the contest have changed; the prize is the same.
Voters need to remember the changes as this year’s US Senate campaign heats up.
The “jungle primary” that is the only way about half the parish’s voters have ever cast a ballot in other than presidential primaries is out and party preference primary is in.
On May 16 only registered Democrats can vote for that party’s candidates and the same for Republicans in the hotly contested bid for Bill Cassidy’s seat.
The Legislature changed the law to apply closed primary voting to congressional, Louisiana Supreme Court, Public Service Commission and Board of Elementary and Secondary Education contests.
The reversal does not apply to any other elected office voting, including this year’s municipal and School Board voting.
Winners of the party nominating contests advance to the November 3 General Election when voters can pull the lever they choose regardless party registration.
Now is the time to check your registration status. Many registered to vote as one affiliate or the other, or none, years ago and haven’t had to worry with it since.
On May 16, for instance, if you want to vote for a Republican candidate but are a registered Democrat, you can’t, and viceversa.
Deadline to change is 30 days before the voting, 20 if you do it online.
Persons registered as No Party will have to make a declaration as Republican or Democrat at the polling place, or not vote.
Men and women registered with any of the other parties certified in the state will not be allowed to vote in the primaries.
According to Secretary of State records, as of December 31 about half the parish’s 80,677 registered voters are 60 or younger. The state went to the open primary system in 1975.
A little more about the parish’s registered voters:
- Republicans – 32,297;
- Democrats – 26,324;
- All other, or none – 22,056;
- White – 52,942;
- Black – 23,932;
- Males – 35,626;
- Females – 45,001.
The state, records show, has 2.96 million registered voters. Of those 1.08 million are Democrat, 1.03 million Republican and 900,000 other affiliations.