More than 3,000 voters had requested absentee ballots in St. Landry as of last Friday and the count was rising, according to Cheryl Miburn, registrar of voters.
The 3,000-plus requests compares to a total of about 2,000 four years ago, she said.
Milburn expects the number of absentee ballot requests to increase due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“People have a little fear of going and standing in line with the pandemic,” she said.
“You have a lot of elderly people with health issues,” she said.
Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin had issued election rules that limited absentee voting and reduced the number of days for early voting.
On Sept. 16, U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick ruled the the state should go back to the rules in place for the July and August elections.
Those rules allowed voters to seek an absentee ballot if they are at a higher risk from COVID-19, under quarantine, experiencing COVID-19 symptoms or carrying for someone with the virus.
Ardoin reduced the coronavirus exceptions to those with a positive test during a two-week period between Oct. 20 and Nov. 3 – election day.
State law allows absentee voting to registered voters who are 65 or older, people out of the parish on election day and the disabled.
Commissioner of Elections Sherri Wharton Hadskey said an average of 60,000 voters cast mail-in ballot, but 156,000 absentee ballots had been requested for the Nov. 3 election.
Milburn released several key dates for the Nov. 3 election.
They include:
Last day to register to vote in person, Oct. 5. Register at the Registrar of Voters Office, 118 S. Court St. Suite 114, Opelousas. Registration applications are available at local libraries, banks, town halls, post offices and health units.
Last day to register online, Oct. 13. Register online at slprov.com or geauxvote.com.
Deadline to request a mail ballot, Oct. 30.
Deadline for the registrar to receive a voted ballot Nov. 2. Return ballots via mail or hand-delivered to the Registrar of Voters Office. Mail voter should make sure that affidavit is signed by the voter and witnessed by someone else.
Early Voting, Oct. 16 through Oct. 27, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the the registrar’s office and Eunice City Hall. No voting on Sundays.
Voters may view a sample ballot by going to slprov.com or geauxvote.com.
For more information, contact the Registrar of Voters Office at 337-948-0572.