It’s probably more than an irony that the huge voter turnout in Louisiana for last month’s presidential election will likely be followed by a dismal showing at the polls on Saturday. That’s unfortunate because democracy works best when more people participate.
The presidential election on November 3 shattered records in Louisiana. Close to a million people voted early in that election and more than two million total votes were cast. That amounts to a turnout of just over 70% of the state’s registered voters.
One month later, things aren’t looking so rosy. Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin is predicting a statewide turnout for this Saturday’s election of only about 20%. Louisiana should do better than that.
Hampering turnout, of course, is the fact that there is no marquee race like the presidential election on the ballot, or the energy that President Donald Trump created on both sides of the political spectrum.
Still, that’s not a good reason for 80% of the state’s voters to stay home. As the saying goes, elections matter, and what we see in low turnout races is that a relatively small minority of voters become the ones who make the decisions for the vast majority of people. And while, voters that choose to sit out an election can do so, such decisions don’t represent democracy at its finest.
To find out what’s on your ballot download the Geaux Vote mobile app that’s provided free of charge by the Secretary of State. And to see what the latest constitutional amendment is all about, you can check out our analysis here.
It’s Thomas Jefferson who said, “We do not have government by the majority. We have government by the majority who participate.” It’s worth it to take the 15 or 20 minutes needed to participate.
CABL Annual Meeting
We regret that because of the COVID pandemic, CABL was not able to host its Annual Meeting and conference this December. Over the years, it has become a memorable event for our members, friends, and hundreds of Leadership Louisiana alumni who have participated. We are working on a special virtual event in January and we will be providing additional information about that shortly. We look forward to the day we can all gather again with friends and supporters who share our mission of making Louisiana a better state for all of its people.
In the meantime, we would like to thank our continuing sponsors,
Entergy Shell Blue Cross Blue Shield Roy O Martin
Cleco Hancock Whitney Community Coffee
Acadian Companies Committee of 100 for Economic Development
The annual CABL business meeting required by our by-laws will be held Thursday, December 17 at 10:00 a.m.