Louisiana § 18:435 Watchers; appointment and commission

Louisiana Statutes

§ 18:435 — Watchers; appointment and commission

Louisiana·Title 18 Conservation

§435. Watchers; appointment and commission A.

(1)(a) Each candidate is entitled to have one watcher at every precinct on election day where the office he seeks is voted on in a primary or general election. The candidate or his authorized representative shall file one list of watchers on a form provided by the secretary of state or on a form which contains the same information as required by the form provided by the secretary of state. When a candidate's list of watchers is filed by the candidate's authorized representative, a letter of authorization from the candidate shall accompany the list of watchers; however, the list of watchers shall be signed by the candidate.

(b)In the case of a presidential election, each slate of candidates for presidential elector is entitled to have one watche

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§435. Watchers; appointment and commission
A.(1)(a) Each candidate is entitled to have one watcher at every precinct on election
day where the office he seeks is voted on in a primary or general election. The candidate or
his authorized representative shall file one list of watchers on a form provided by the
secretary of state or on a form which contains the same information as required by the form
provided by the secretary of state. When a candidate's list of watchers is filed by the
candidate's authorized representative, a letter of authorization from the candidate shall
accompany the list of watchers; however, the list of watchers shall be signed by the
candidate.
(b) In the case of a presidential election, each slate of candidates for presidential
elector is entitled to have one watcher at every precinct. The state central committee of each
recognized political party shall be responsible for filing the list of watchers for its slate of
candidates for presidential elector, and the list of watchers shall be signed by the chairman
of the state central committee. The list of watchers for a slate of candidates for presidential
elector who are not affiliated with a recognized political party shall be signed and filed by
any person so authorized by the presidential candidate supported by the slate of electors. A
letter of authorization from the presidential candidate, or from an authorized agent of his
campaign, shall accompany the list of watchers.
(2) In addition to the watchers provided for in Paragraph (1), each candidate may
designate one watcher as a "super watcher" who shall have the qualifications, powers, and
duties of watchers provided for by R.S. 18:427 and who shall be admitted as a watcher in
every precinct in the designated parish where the office the candidate seeks is on the ballot
in the primary and general election. The selection of the super watcher shall be made in the
same manner as for watchers set forth in this Section.
(3) Any person who is supporting or opposing a proposition or question to be
submitted to the voters or supporting or opposing the recall of a public officer and who has
filed a report required by R.S. 18:1486 for such election is entitled to have one watcher at
every precinct where the issue he seeks to influence is voted on in an election. For the
purposes of this Subsection, "person" means any individual, partnership, association, labor
union, political committee, corporation, or other legal entity, including its subsidiaries.
(4)(a) The parish executive committee of a recognized political party having at least
twenty-five percent of the registered voters in the state registered as being affiliated with the
political party is entitled to have political party super watchers in the parish if a candidate
affiliated with the political party is on the ballot. The designation of political party super
watchers shall be made in accordance with this Section and as provided in Subparagraph (b)
of this Paragraph.
(b)(i) In a parish with fewer than fifty thousand registered voters, the parish
executive committee of the recognized political party may designate one political party super
watcher and one alternate political party super watcher.
(ii) In a parish with fifty thousand or more but fewer than one hundred thousand
registered voters, the parish executive committee of the recognized political party may
designate two political party super watchers and two alternate political party super watchers.
(iii) In a parish with one hundred thousand or more but fewer than one hundred fifty
thousand registered voters, the parish executive committee of the recognized political party
may designate three political party super watchers and three alternate political party super
watchers.
(iv) In a parish with one hundred fifty thousand or more but fewer than two hundred
thousand registered voters, the parish executive committee of the recognized political party
may designate four political party super watchers and four alternate political party super
watchers.
(v) In a parish with two hundred thousand or more registered voters, the parish
executive committee of the recognized political party may designate five political party super
watchers and five alternate political party super watchers.
(c) Each political party super watcher shall have the qualifications, powers, and
duties of watchers provided for by R.S. 18:427 and shall be admitted as a watcher in every
precinct in the designated parish where a candidate affiliated with his political party is on the
ballot, except that not more than one political party super watcher may serve at a single
precinct at the same time. Both a political party super watcher and an alternate political party
super watcher may serve on election day, except that the political party super watcher and
alternate political party super watcher may not serve at the same time and no more political
party super watchers and alternate political party super watchers may serve at one time than
the number of political party super watchers allowed in Subparagraph (b) of this Paragraph.
(d) The chairman of the parish executive committee of the political party shall sign
and be responsible for filing the list of political party super watchers.
(e) The chairman of the state central committee of a recognized political party may
designate super watchers for the parish, in accordance with this Section, in any parish
without a parish executive committee of the recognized political party.
(5) The commissioners shall regulate the number of watchers inside the polling place
as provided in R.S. 18:427.
B.(1)(a) A list of watchers shall be filed with the clerk of court by hand delivery,
facsimile, mail, or commercial courier before 4:30 p.m. on the tenth business day before the
party primary, primary, or general election; however, if the tenth business day before the
party primary, primary, or general election falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or other legal holiday,
the list shall be filed on the next day which is not a Saturday, Sunday, or other legal holiday.
For purposes of this Paragraph, "commercial courier" shall have the same meaning as
provided in R.S. 13:3204(D). If the office that the candidate seeks is voted on in more than
one parish, a list of watchers shall be filed with the clerk of court in each parish where the
candidate will have watchers.
(b) A list of watchers submitted by a candidate for the party primary or primary
election may be used for the second party primary, primary, or general election only if the
candidate notifies the clerk of court in writing by 4:30 p.m. on the tenth business day before
the general election that he wants to use the same list of watchers.
(c) A list of political party super watchers submitted by a party for the party primary
or primary election may be used for the second party primary, primary, or general election
only if the chairman of the parish executive committee or the state central committee of the
party notifies the clerk of court in writing by 4:30 p.m. on the tenth business day before the
general election that the chairman wants to use the same list of political party super watchers.
(2) Except for a candidate, parish executive committee or state central committee of
a recognized political party filing a list of political party super watchers, or recognized
political party filing for a slate of candidates for presidential elector, any person filing a list
of watchers shall attach a certified statement that the report required by R.S. 18:1486 has
been filed with the supervisory committee in compliance with the Campaign Finance
Disclosure Act.
(3) A list of watchers shall contain only one watcher and one alternate watcher for
each precinct where the candidate or person submitting the list is entitled to have a watcher.
The list shall be typed or legibly written, and it shall contain the name and mailing address
of each watcher and alternate watcher, and a designation of the precinct where he is to serve.
C. The parish board of election supervisors shall promptly issue a commission to
each watcher named on a timely filed list of watchers. A person shall not be commissioned
as a watcher if he has been appointed as a commissioner-in-charge or selected as a
commissioner in the same election. A person selected as an alternate commissioner may be
commissioned as a watcher. However, if the alternate commissioner must replace an absent
or unqualified commissioner, he shall not serve as a watcher in the same election and his
commission as a watcher shall be deemed void. Prior to the opening of the polls on election
day, the parish board of election supervisors shall deliver to each precinct a list of the
watchers and alternate watchers who are entitled to serve at the election. The list shall
specify the precinct or precincts for which each watcher is eligible to serve. A watcher must
present his commission to the commissioner-in-charge of the precinct for which he is eligible
to serve prior to serving at the polling place.
D. A candidate, or person as defined in Subsection A of this Section, shall be entitled
to have both a watcher and an alternate watcher serve at the same precinct on election day.
However, the watcher and alternate watcher may not serve at the same time.

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Legislative History

Acts 1976, No. 697, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1978; Acts 1977, No. 471, §1; Acts 1978, No. 292, §1, eff. July 6, 1978; Acts 1985, No. 58, §1; Acts 1987, No. 831, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1988; Acts 1989, No. 179, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1990; Acts 1990, No. 107, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1991; Acts 1991, No. 201, §1, eff. July 2, 1991; Acts 1993, No. 317, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1994; Acts 1999, No. 697, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2000; Acts 2001, No. 1181, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2002; Acts 2003, No. 1220, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2004; Acts 2004, No. 526, §2, eff. June 25, 2004; Acts 2006, No. 560, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2007; Acts 2007, No. 240, §1; Acts 2010, No. 570, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2011; Acts 2010, No. 759, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2011; Acts 2012, No. 138, §1, eff. May 14, 2012; Acts 2014, No. 60, §1, eff. May 16, 2014; Acts 2015, No. 307, §1, eff. June 29, 2015; Acts 2019, No. 374, §1, eff. June 19, 2019; Acts 2020, No. 28, §1, eff. June 4, 2020; Acts 2021, No. 381, §3, eff. Feb. 1, 2022; Acts 2022, No. 274, §1, eff. June 3, 2022; Acts 2024, No. 583, §1; Acts 2025, No. 386, §1, eff. Aug. 1, 2025, §2, eff. See Act.