Our Views: Early voter beats lines
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With interest high in the Nov. 4 presidential election, there is the prospect of a high or even record turnout of voters in Louisiana.
There are also hotly contested races for U.S. Senate statewide and U.S. House races in several parts of the state on the same day.
Candidates in local runoff elections — for example, the eight runoffs for Metro Council in East Baton Rouge Parish — also will be seeking to get their supporters to the polls.
Secretary of State Jay Dardenne is encouraging voters to consider early voting, which begins Tuesday at registrar of voters’ offices and runs through Oct. 28.
Several locations are available for early voting in East Baton Rouge Parish, not limited to the downtown Governmental Building. The parish offices at Coursey Boulevard, the State Archives and the Office of Motor Vehicles in Baker will have early voting sites.
Voters can contact their registrar of voters in any parish or Dardenne’s office for early voting locations. Dardenne’s election Web site is http://www.geauxvote.com.
Unlike the old days of absentee voting, no reason is needed to vote early — only convenience. But with a big turnout looming on Nov. 4, the popularity of early voting is bound to grow.
The presidential campaigns in states with early voting are encouraging their supporters to take advantage of the practice. A student in Colorado told The New York Times that, while she has plenty of time to vote, the folks behind her might have a narrower window of time, so voting early helps her candidate increase turnout.
It also eases the strain on Election Day workers, who — as Dardenne noted to the Press Club of Baton Rouge recently — are contributing to America’s democracy at every election, large or small.
There are also hotly contested races for U.S. Senate statewide and U.S. House races in several parts of the state on the same day.
Candidates in local runoff elections — for example, the eight runoffs for Metro Council in East Baton Rouge Parish — also will be seeking to get their supporters to the polls.
Secretary of State Jay Dardenne is encouraging voters to consider early voting, which begins Tuesday at registrar of voters’ offices and runs through Oct. 28.
Several locations are available for early voting in East Baton Rouge Parish, not limited to the downtown Governmental Building. The parish offices at Coursey Boulevard, the State Archives and the Office of Motor Vehicles in Baker will have early voting sites.
Voters can contact their registrar of voters in any parish or Dardenne’s office for early voting locations. Dardenne’s election Web site is http://www.geauxvote.com.
Unlike the old days of absentee voting, no reason is needed to vote early — only convenience. But with a big turnout looming on Nov. 4, the popularity of early voting is bound to grow.
The presidential campaigns in states with early voting are encouraging their supporters to take advantage of the practice. A student in Colorado told The New York Times that, while she has plenty of time to vote, the folks behind her might have a narrower window of time, so voting early helps her candidate increase turnout.
It also eases the strain on Election Day workers, who — as Dardenne noted to the Press Club of Baton Rouge recently — are contributing to America’s democracy at every election, large or small.
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