Today is the big day – your last chance to head to the polls. Kace Kieschnick reports.
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With Democrats outnumbering Republicans in early voting, that could shake things up this Election Day. Andrew Greenstein reports.
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One political pollster says national trends are impacting Louisiana’s U.S. Senate race. Jeff Palermo has the story.
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Today is the day – Election Day. Polls are open until eight p-m; and if you’re already in line at eight o’clock, you will be able to cast a ballot and have your voice be heard. Secretary of State Nancy Landry says with more than 45-hundred candidates competing in more than 25-hundred contests throughout the state – obviously not on a single ballot; that would be some sort of record – you’re urged to look up your sample ballot on GeauxVote-dot-com or on the GeauxVote app.
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Landry says along with bringing your government-issued photo ID with you, there is a dress code of sorts that you will need to abide by in order to cast a ballot.
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Landry says certain voters may notice some people monitoring activity at the polling places – and that’s all they’ll be doing.
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Landry says based on early voting numbers, she’s expecting an overall voter turnout of between 48 and 52-percent, which would be one of the biggest turnouts of any non-presidential election in state history.
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Even though early voting statistics and a pair of polls showing Julia Letlow and Jamie Davis tied have made things very interesting in Louisiana’s U.S. Senate race, Jeremy Alford with LaPolitics-dot-com says Letlow still goes into Election Day today as the clear favorite.
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But Alford says other expected outcomes might not pan out as planned. He says while the last-minute redrawing of the congressional map will likely result in five Republicans and one Democrat representing Louisiana in the House, early voting numbers indicate that it won’t be as easy as anticipated.
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As for the ten constitutional amendments on the ballot, Alford says with voters rejecting every single proposed amendment in the last two elections, voters may be getting sick and tired of these amendments popping up on their ballots – especially those towards the end.
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A Shreveport-based polling firm calls today’s Louisiana U.S. Senate election a toss-up. Bishop George, the co-founder and CEO of Vantage Data House, says in June, he had Republican Julia Letlow leading Democrat Jamie Davis by eight percentage points. However, their research has found Black voters, who are likely voting for Davis, are more energized to have their voices heard.
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Black voters accounted for 34-percent of the early votes. George says Louisiana is a conservative state, and a red tide voters could head to the polls today.
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Two nonpartisan election prediction websites, Inside Elections and Sabato’s Crystal Ball, has the winner of Louisiana’s Senate race as “likely Republican.”
President Trump’s endorsement of Letlow helped her defeat incumbent Bill Cassidy and State Treasurer John Fleming in the Republican primary. But pollster Dr. Jim Kitchens says the President’s endorsement is not helping her in the general election.
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Kitchens says Letlow is facing similar problems that other Republicans are facing in red states, the Trump economy has not produced the results that were promised two years ago.
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There’s a chance of rain and the potential for a strong thunderstorm on this Election Day. LSU Health Climatologist Barry Keim says rain chances are high because of a cold front.
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Keim says temperatures will be mild and it will be breezy. Rainfall totals are expected to be higher for north Louisiana as opposed to south Louisiana, and there is a low threat for severe weather.
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Number-15 LSU hosts ninth-ranked Alabama at 2:30 on Saturday. It is the first afternoon kickoff in Tiger Stadium for the rivalry since 2010, but LSU is 16-and-1 in its last 17 2:30 kickoffs. Tennessee set the highest verified crowd noise record in a win over Alabama at the same time earlier this season, and Kiffin says he wants LSU fans to break it.
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With the SEC’s new scheduling model, LSU and Alabama are no longer annual opponents. They have met every year since 1964, but this will be their last matchup of that 63-year streak. Kiffin says, unfortunately, most decisions in college football come down to money, and very little is safe.
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The first College Football Playoff rankings come out today. With two losses each already, Saturday’s game is critical for both LSU and Alabama as they fight to keep their postseason hopes alive. Kiffin, though, says none of that matters on the field.
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The second Will Wade era of LSU basketball begins tonight against LSU New Orleans. To unconventionally kick-start his second stint in Baton Rouge, Wade built his roster with experienced fifth-year seniors and overseas pros. He has taken a lot of heat for his new recruiting methods, but he says his team doesn’t hear any of the outside noise.
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With the eligibility battles and delayed enrollment affecting much of his roster in the offseason, Wade says it will take time for the team to fully develop. He says that does not mean they won’t win games while they improve in the early season.
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Tip-off in the P-MAC is at 7 p.m.