President, senate seat among ballot issues

With the Presidential Election looming, the local Registrar of Voters offices have released early voting schedules throughout the Tri-parishes for Tuesday, Oct. 21, through Tuesday, Oct. 28.

Early voting excludes Sunday, Oct. 26.

In Lafourche Parish, early voters can vote at one of the two registrar offices, 307 West 4th Street in Thibodaux or 101 W. 112 St. in Cut Off. St. Mary early voters will vote at the Courthouse, 500 Main St. in Franklin or 301 3rd St. in Morgan City. Terrebonne Parish early voters can vote at Courthouse Annex in Houma.

All early voting will be held from 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m. on the select days. To vote, residents need a valid picture identification, but not their voter identification cards.

Voter registration in the Tri-parish area closed on Oct. 6. All voters who have requested an absentee ballot must submit it to the registrar’s office by Monday, Nov. 3.

Election Day voting will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 4, from 6 a.m.-8 p.m.

Also for those registered voters who have not voted in a while, the local registrar offices ask that they check the status of their registration prior to the election.

Lafourche Parish has more than 55,000 registered voters. Terrebonne Parish has approximately 63,262 registered voters, while St. Mary Parish has nearly 34,000.

St. Mary, Lafourche and Terrebonne voters will head to the polls to select between Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama for U.S. President, Democrat Mary Landrieu and Republican John Kennedy for U.S. Senator and seven proposed statewide constitutional amendments.

Terrebonne Parish voters will cast ballots on eight parish-wide propositions and several elective offices in addition to the federal and state races.

Voter turnout for this election is estimated to be higher than any other presidential election in the last 24 years.

Jolene Holcombe, St. Mary registrar of voters, said its partly because voters have a high interest in the two candidates seeking the presidency.

In Terrebonne Parish, Registrar of Voters Linda Rodrigue anticipates at least a 60 percent voter turnout.

In Lafourche, Registrar of Voters spokesman Tammy Wendelschae-fer said she anticipates that nearly 3,500 residents will cast votes during the early election period.