New Orleans election guide: What to know before you cast your ballot

Election dates

• Candidate qualifying period: July 9 to July 11

• Primary Election: Oct. 11
• General Election: Nov. 15

Voter Registration Deadlines

• Primary Election:
  
  • In person or by mail: Sept. 10
  • Online (via GeauxVote): Sept. 20
• General Election:
  
  • In person or by mail: Oct. 15
  • Online (via GeauxVote): Oct. 25

Early Voting

• Primary: Sept. 27 to Oct. 4 (excluding Sunday, Sept. 28) from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• General: Nov. 1 to Nov. 8 (excluding Sunday, Nov. 2) from  8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Absentee Ballots

• Request deadline:
  
  • Primary: Oct. 7 by 4:30 p.m.
  • General: Nov. 12 by 4:30 p.m.
  • Note: Military, overseas voters, and hospitalized individuals may request ballots up to 4:30 p.m. CST the day before Election Day.
• Return deadline:
  
  • Primary: Oct. 10 by 4:30 p.m.
  • General: Nov. 14 by 4:30 p.m.
  • Note: Deadlines apply to all except military and overseas voters.

Election Day poll hours: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Are you eligible?

To vote in Louisiana, you must be:

• Registered by the deadline
• At least 18 years old
• A U.S. citizen
• A legal resident
• Not under an order of imprisonment for conviction of a felony
• Not judicially declared mentally incompetent

Are you registered?

The Louisiana Secretary of State's website has a voter portal you can use to check whether you’re registered to vote.

1. To find your voting information, select "Search by Voter" 
2. Enter your first and last name, zip code, birth month and year 
3. Click "Submit," and the portal should pull up your information 

If you missed the deadline, you won’t be able to vote, but you can register for the next election online. If you’ve moved, changed your name, address or party affiliation, you should notify the registrar of voters in your parish or make changes online.

Can you vote by mail?

Unless you’re a military or overseas voter, you’ll need to have a specific reason to vote absentee. If you’re eligible, you can request an absentee ballot through the state’s online voter portal or you may print and mail an application directly to your registrar of voters. Disabled, military and overseas voters may be able to get their absentee ballot electronically. For more information, they can contact their registrar of voters.

How to vote early 

If you’re registered to vote, you should be able to vote early.

Designated polling places will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. for each day of early voting.

Here’s a list of early voting locations in Orleans Parish:

City Hall
1300 Perdido Street, Room 1W24
Directions from here: Take a right, walk past the Snack Bar to the hallway on the right.

Algiers Courthouse
225 Morgan Street, Room 105

Chef Menteur Voting Machine Warehouse Site
8870 Chef Menteur Highway

Lake Vista Community Center
6500 Spanish Fort Boulevard

Find your polling place 

The state’s online voter portal tells you where to cast your vote. Search by voter or parish to find your polling location.

What should I bring to the polls?

You’ll need to have a current and valid photo ID with your signature.

Options include:

• Louisiana driver’s license
• Louisiana special ID 
• LA Wallet digital driver’s license
• Military ID
• Some other generally recognized picture ID 

If your ID does not have your picture or signature, you can still cast your vote by signature on a voter affidavit.

New Orleans Mayor

• Joseph “Joe” Bikulege Jr. (I)
• Russell J. Butler (No Party)
• “Manny Chevrolet” Bruno (No Party)
• Eileen Carter (No Party)
• Renada Collins (No Party)
• Royce Duplessis (D)
• Arthur Hunter (D)
• Frank Robert Janusa (R)
• Helena Moreno (D)
• Frank M. Scurlock (No Party)
• Oliver Thomas (D)
• Ricky Twiggs (I)

Orleans Parish Sheriff

• Susan Hutson (D) — Incumbent
• Ernesteayo J. “Ernest” Lee Sr. (R)
• Robert “Bob” Murray (D)
• Julian Parker (D)
• Edwin Mark Shorty, Jr. (D)
• Michelle Woodfork (D)

New Orleans City Council

At-Large — Division 1

• Delisha Boyd (D)
• Matthew “Matt” Hill (R)
• Matthew Willard (D)

At-Large — Division 2

• Kenneth Cutno (D)
• Gregory Manning (D)
• JP Morrell (D) — Incumbent

District A

• Holly Friedman (D)
• Aimee McCarron (D)
• Alex Mossing (D)
• Robert “Bob” Murrell (No Party)
• Bridget Neal (R) 

District B

• Lesli Harris (D) — Incumbent, running unopposed

District C

• Eliot S. Barron (Green)
• Kelsey Foster (D)
• Jackson Kimbrell (No Party)
• Freddie King III (D) — Incumbent

District D

• Belden “Noonie Man” Batiste (D)
• Eugene Green (D) — Incumbent
• Leilani Heno (No Party)

District E

• Richard Bell, Sr. (D)
• Kimberly Burbank (D)
• Danyelle Christmas (D)
• Jason Hughes (D)
• Nathaniel Jones (I)
• Willie Morgan (D)
• Cyndi Nguyen (D)
• Gavin Richard (I)
• Jonathan Anthony Roberts (No Party)

Orleans Parish Coroner

Dwight McKenna (D) — Incumbent, running unopposed

Orleans Parish Assessor

• Coreygerard Dowden (No Party)
• Casius H. Pealer III (D)
• Earl “Jay” Schmitt Jr. (R)
• Erroll G. Williams (D) — Incumbent

Orleans Parish Civil District Court Clerk

• Chelsey Richard Napoleon (D) — Incumbent, running unopposed 

Orleans Parish Criminal Court Clerk

• Calvin Duncan (D)
• Darren Lombard (D)
• Valencia Miles (No Party)