Bid To Shorten Voting Hours Revived In La. Senate

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — A proposal to shorten voting hours on most election days in Louisiana has been revived by a state Senate committee that killed the idea earlier this month.

Currently, poll hours run from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. The House-approved measure pushed by Secretary of State Tom Schedler would push back the opening of polls to 7 a.m. on Saturday elections.

The Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee, which had voted against the idea, reversed course Wednesday and sent it to the full Senate for debate.

Schedler says he's seeking the change to shorten work days for poll workers. He says 2.5 percent of voter turnout usually occurs in that first hour.

Opponents say the change could limit voting opportunities for people.

Filed Under: voting hours