Monroe Dispatch - No Struggle, No Progress

Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2020. Louisiana offers absentee ballots by mail to voters who will be unable to vote in person. All other persons are expected to vote in person. Louisiana offers early voting.

The following categories are recognized in Louisiana for absentee voting:

· Senior Citizen: If you are 65 years of age or older you may apply through a general application to vote absentee.

· Temporarily Absent: if you are temporarily outside of Louisiana or your parish during the early voting period and on election day, or expect to be, you may apply through a general application.

· Offshore: If you work or expect to be offshore working during early voting period and on election day, you may apply through general application.

· Nursing Home, Higher Education, Clergy, Involuntary confinement, Hospitalized, Incarcerated, Address Confidentiality Program, Physical Disability, Homebound, Military or Overseas categories may follow the same guidelines to place an application to do absentee voting.

Many people have been voting by mail over a period of time. However, there are basic guidelines to vote by mail which include: 1) Review the absentee ballot application and confirm that you meet the eligibility requirements for voting absentee; 2) Fill out the application completely; 3) Submit the request to your local election office. You should request your ballot as far in advance of the election as possible. The deadline to request a ballot by mail is (received by) Friday , October 30, 2020. 4) When your ballot arrives, read it carefully and follow the instructions to complete and return it. Mailing absentee voting ballot requires 2 postage stamps.

You may also submit an online ballot. This can be done by following the following steps after logging in to the Louisiana Voter Portal:

1. Click the “Search by Voter” button.

2. Type in your First Name, Last Name and Zip Code or Birth Month and Year and then click the “Submit” button

3. Click the “Request absentee Ballot” link found under the Quick Links heading; and

4. Complete requested information and submit.

Note: You must be logged in to the Voter Portal as the voter for whom the request is intended to electronically submit a request for an absentee ballot.

Remember: November 3, 2020 is the Presidential General and Open Congressional primary election. It is important to take care absentee voting according to guidelines and specified deadlines. Everyone must vote whether by mail or in person. Vote! Vote!! Vote!!!