Fall Primary Voting Is Here, Are You Ready?

Voting season is here and the primary is this coming weekend, October 24th. With that in mind, here are some resources to help you choose which candidate get your vote.

For local information, the Terrebonne Parish Clerk of Court website contains the following:

• Polls for the October 24, 2015 election will open at 7:00 a.m. and close at 8:00 p.m.

• To verify your registration and precinct location, click here and input the information requested.

• For past election results by parish, multi-parish, or statewide, click here and input the information requested.

• To see a sample ballot of an upcoming election, click here and input the parish and precinct information. Be sure to click on "full text" for a complete description of any propositions/amendments.

From the Louisiana Secretary of State's website:

The following is important information for the Oct. 24, 2015 primary and the Nov. 21, 2015 general:

• early voting is Oct. 10-17 (except Sunday and holidays) from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. for the Oct. 24th primary election; and
• early voting is Nov. 7-14 (except Sunday and holidays) from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. for the Nov. 21st general election.

The Louisiana Secretary of State's website also contains information:

• register to vote
• how to vote
• get election material (including a full candidate list)
• and many other informative materials

There is also a GeauxVote app. Download it here.

Where to Vote and Sample Ballot 11/4/2008

So you want to vote next Tuesday and you might not be sure where to go or what's going to be on the ballot here in Terrebonne Parish? Okay, let's take a look.

First, you'll need to find out what precinct you live in. The ballot will vary slightly in each. To find out exactly which precinct you live in and which polling place you should use, try going here: LOUISIANA SECRETARY OF STATE POLLING LOCATOR. Just type in your name or address, and it will tell you which precinct is yours. Be sure to follow the data entry instructions at the bottom of the form. A bit of a hassle, I know, but isn't democracy worth it?

After you have your precinct number, you can look at a sample ballot for your precinct in Terrebonne Parish here: TERREBONNE PARISH SAMPLE BALLOT PAGE. Click on your precinct number in the long list of numbers on the page. Voila'! You're an informed voter!

If you have any questions, call the Terrebonne Parish Library Information Service at 985-876-5158 ext. 201 or the Terrebonne Parish Registrar of voters at 985-873-6533.

Early Voting & The Louisiana Gumbo Project

Early Voting

I'm letting people know a day late, but a patron just let me know that early voting started yesterday in Louisiana. I confirmed it with WWL. It will run through October 28th, 8:30 am to 6:00 pm. No matter where you are, just contact your Parish registrar of voters and find out where to go--chances are it won't be your normal polling place. Early polls indicate turnout on November 4th will be heavy, so you might consider it. In Terrebonne Parish, the Registrar's office is on the first floor of the Terrebonne Parish Court House across from St. Francis. You can call them at (985) 873-6533 for more information.

The Louisiana Gumbo Project

Not long ago, Judy Smith with the Louisiana Section of the State Library came down to Terrebonne Parish to show us all the new grant-funded Louisiana Gumbo Project, which is basically a multi-subject, multimedia database of all-things Louisiana, including sound recordings, art, maps, recipes, photographs and lots of other nifty Louisiana-ania. It is all re-arrangeable, customizable, searchable, downloadable and save-able. A dream for a reference librarian with an eighth grade Louisiana history student (and her mom) standing in front of him. Even if you aren't a librarian or an eighth grader, browsing through it might make you smile. And if living here after Gustav is wearing a little thin on you, browsing through it might remind you of why it might not be so bad, after all.

The material for the Project was gleaned from a variety of places, including the Historic New Orleans Collection and the Louisiana State Museum.