OpINion: Cast Your Vote!

by Malise Prieto

CAST YOUR VOTE. It’s important!

I’ve been watching St. Tammany’s voting statistics for more than two years now, and it is so disappointing to see that we are on a downward spiral. I know that many people were confused or frustrated by the “closed primary” system that went into effect this past spring. Closed primaries kept many people from voting in the Congressional race if their candidate was registered in one party and the voter in another, but I think that many more voters just did not take the time to go to the polls.

Looking back to February 2008, when we had municipal elections and Democrat and Republican party politics, only 17.07 percent of our registered voters went to the polls. In March, for the First District U.S. Congressional Primary, only 17.13 percent turned out. The Republican run-off in April had only a 9.23 percent turnout. The general election held on May 3 was not better. Only 9.88 percent of 152,037 registered voters in our parish voted in the U.S. Congressional General Election. What a shame!

Last November, for the state legislature and parish government run-offs, only 16.62 percent of us voted in St. Tammany. AND, for the governor’s race the month before, less than half (46.66 percent) of our registered voters went to the polls. Here’s one that shocked me: last summer, a mere 3.4 percent turned out to vote on the Northshore Harbor Tax that raised the taxes for 61,000 people!

All these low numbers are for a parish that I consider the most educated, the most affluent and with the most at risk in the whole state of Louisiana. What’s the problem?

I have been on a personal mission since last fall, going to various business, political and professional groups, laying out the facts and trying to get people to go to the polls. My talks have not been for or against any person or proposition. I was simply asking people to do their civic duty and make some choice in candidate and tax matters.

The legislature has made voting easier by enacting “early voting,” where you can appear at the Registrar of Voters’ office, both in Covington at the Justice Center and in Slidell at the temporary Annex on Old Military Road (Levee Board Buildings), and cast your vote. In the past, you had to “be out of town” on Election Day. Now, you can “early vote” at your convenience from Saturday to Saturday (excluding Sunday) beginning with the Saturday that is 14 days before the election day. This past session, our legislators even added more hours to the early voting schedule. You can now early vote from 8:30 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. This change was made to help those voters who get off work at 5 p.m.

Many of us are living busy lives. We’re raising families, hurrying to the grocery or bank and just barely keeping our noses above water handling our daily affairs. Some are working out of town or lucky enough to be vacationing out of state. On Election Day, you might have to attend a wedding, funeral, soccer game or other organized event with your children or friends. There are a million things to do and a million excuses for not going to the polls. No matter what, take a few minutes and CAST THAT VOTE!
Cast an early vote, or vote in your precinct on September 6 (1st Party Primary), October 4 (Open Primary/2nd Party Primary) and November 4 (Open General/Presidential/ Congressional).
Please, help me turn our parish around!

Thanks,
Malise Prieto
St. Tammany Clerk of Court

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