LAFAYETTE PARISH — Confusion over a ballot item linked to Louisiana’s congressional districts prompted a surge of calls to election officials as early voting got underway in Lafayette, the parish registrar of voters said.
Charlene Menard, the Lafayette Parish registrar of voters, said her office has fielded numerous calls from residents unsure whether elections had been canceled after a recent court decision invalidated the state’s congressional district map.
“We had been waiting for this answer since like January,” one voter said. “Just unfortunately, it just won’t count till 2028 now; we’ll have to revote.”
The uncertainty follows a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that Louisiana’s congressional districts are unconstitutional, halting closed U.S. House primary races. Despite that, the races still appear on early voting machines, though they will not be counted.
“I am having a lot of calls to the fact that—thinking that everything was canceled,” Menard said. “We’re assuring them that early voting is still going on. You will still see the congressional race on our machines, but election night, it will not be counted. It will be voided.”
At the Martin Luther King Jr. Recreation Center, one of Lafayette’s polling locations, a steady stream of voters cast ballots on the first official day of early voting. Across the street from the downtown courthouse, turnout remained consistent throughout the day.
Election officials emphasized that all other races and measures on the ballot remain valid.
Polling locations closed at 6:00 p.m. Saturday and are scheduled to reopen Monday at 8:30 a.m., with early voting continuing through May 9.
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