§ 18:562 — Prerequisites to voting

§562. Prerequisites to voting
A. Identification of voters. (1) A person who desires to vote in a primary or general
election shall give his name and address to a commissioner, who shall announce the
applicant's name and address to the persons at the polling place.
(2)(a) Each applicant shall identify himself, in the presence and view of the
bystanders, and present to the commissioners one of the following:
(i) A Louisiana driver's license, a Louisiana special identification card issued
pursuant to R.S. 40:1321, or other generally recognized picture identification card that
contains the name and signature of the applicant.
(ii) A United States military identification card that contains the applicant's name and
picture.
(b) If the applicant does not have one of the forms of identification provided in
Subparagraph (a) of this Paragraph, the applicant shall complete and sign an affidavit, which
is supplied by the secretary of state, to that effect before the commissioners, which affidavit
shall include the applicant's date of birth and mother's maiden name. If the applicant is
unable to read or write or is otherwise unable to complete the affidavit due to disability, the
applicant may receive assistance in completing the affidavit and the commissioner shall make
a notation on the affidavit. The applicant may receive the assistance of any person of his
choice, including a commissioner, except a candidate, commissioner-in-charge, the
applicant's employer or employer's agent, or the applicant's union agent. The commissioners
shall place the affidavit in the envelope marked "Registrar of Voters" and attach the envelope
to the precinct register. However, an applicant who is allowed to vote without the picture
identification required by Subparagraph (a) of this Paragraph is subject to challenge as
provided in R.S. 18:565.
B. Review of precinct register. The commissioners shall then determine:
(1) If the applicant's name is found in the precinct register on the official list of
voters or the supplemental list of voters and the applicant has not voted absentee by mail or
during early voting, one of the commissioners shall announce the applicant's name again.
(2) If the applicant's name is found in the precinct register on the inactive list of
voters and the applicant has not voted absentee by mail or during early voting, the applicant
may vote after complying with provisions of R.S. 18:196(B). After such compliance, one
of the commissioners shall announce the applicant's name again and shall preserve the
address confirmation notice received from the voter by placing the address confirmation
notice in the envelope marked "Registrar of Voters" and attaching the envelope to the
precinct register.
(3) If the name of a qualified voter was omitted from the precinct register, the
commissioner shall:
(a) Contact the registrar of voters or the secretary of state to ascertain whether or not
the person applying to vote is registered to vote in that precinct.
(b) In the absence of a valid challenge of the voter and confirmation from the
registrar of voters or secretary of state that the applicant is registered to vote in the precinct,
allow the applicant to sign a precinct register correction affidavit before a commissioner
attesting that he is a qualified registered voter and describing the omission in the voter
records and print the voter's name in the precinct register behind the precinct register
correction affidavit tab.
(c) Preserve the applicant's original affidavit as part of the election records by placing
it in the envelope marked "Registrar of Voters" and attach the envelope to the precinct
register after the termination of voting.
(4) If the name of a qualified voter was incorrectly printed on the precinct register,
the commissioner shall:
(a) Allow the applicant to complete a voter registration application to update his
voter registration record.
(b) Preserve the voter registration application as part of the election records by
placing it in the envelope marked "Registrar of Voters" and attach the envelope to the
precinct register after the termination of voting.
C. Handwritten signature of the applicant. If the applicant is able to sign his name,
he shall sign his handwritten signature in ink in the space for his signature on the precinct
register. When the applicant has submitted to the commissioners picture identification that
contains the signature of the applicant, the applicant's signature shall be compared to his
signature on the picture identification. If the applicant is unable to sign his name, he shall
make his mark in ink in the proper space on the precinct register.
D. Procedure after identification. If satisfied that the applicant has identified himself
as the voter named on the precinct register and that he is qualified to vote, a commissioner
shall initial the precinct register opposite the voter's signature or mark. The voter then shall
be allowed to vote.

Legislative History

Acts 1976, No. 697, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1978. Amended by Acts 1977, No. 523, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1978; Acts 1980, No. 506, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1981; Acts 1986, No. 669, §1; Acts 1988, No. 909, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1989; Acts 1993, No. 418, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1994; Acts 1994, 3rd Ex. Sess., No. 10, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1995; Acts 1997, No. 779, §1; Acts 1999, No. 254, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2000; Acts 2001, No. 1032, §7; Acts 2001, No. 1181, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2002; Acts 2005, No. 220, §4, eff. Jan. 1, 2006; Acts 2007, No. 240, §1; Acts 2009, No. 369, §1; Acts 2012, No. 138, §1, eff. May 14, 2012; Acts 2018, No. 584, §3, eff. Jan. 1, 2019; Acts 2019, No. 133, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2020; Acts 2023, No. 91, §1, eff. June 6, 2023.