(The Daily Advertiser) – Here’s a primer on things you should probably know about Louisiana’s ballot. We won’t talk about the presidential race in this article, but if you’ll find everything about the national races here.

The basics

  • Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Nov. 8. Find your polling place here, or call your Registrar of Voters.
  • Want to beat the rush? Early voting starts Oct. 25.
  • Where you live determines what’s on your ballot. Find a sample ballot here.
  • Be sure to take one of these to the polls: a driver’s license, Louisiana Special ID or another generally recognized form of picture ID.
  • When you vote, you’ll get a special Louisiana-themed ‘I voted’ sticker. Trust us, you’ll want it.

Constitutional amendments

There are six proposed amendments to the Louisiana Constitution on the ballot this year.

Amendments are traditionally confusing (it’s mostly legal language) so we had Louisiana’s Public Affairs Research Council break it down for us using words we can actually understand.More on the amendments:

Congressional candidates

Louisiana will choose a U.S. Senator and all six U.S. House representatives, one for each of our districts. Find your district using this map. Here’s a quick rundown of the candidates:

  • U.S. Senate: More than 20 candidates qualified for the ballot, but the big names include: Rep. Charles Boustany, R-Lafayette; Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell, D-Elm Grove; New Orleans attorney Caroline Fayard, a Democrat; Rep. John Fleming, R-Minden; Republican state Treasurer John Kennedy; retired Col. Rob Maness, a Republican; and ex-KKK Grand Wizard David Duke.
  • 1st District: Incumbent Steve Scalise (R-New Orleans), who also serves as the House’s majority whip, is up for re-election against: Lee Ann Dugas (D), Danil Ezekiel Faust (D), Joe Swider (D), Howard Kearney (L), Eliot Barron (G) and Chuemai Yang (I).
  • 2nd District: Incumbent Cedric Richmond (D-New Orleans) is up for re-election. His opponents: Kip Holden (D), Kenneth Cutno (D), and Samuel Davenport (L)
  • 3rd District: Boustany ditched his re-election bid for this Acadiana district to run for Senate, so his seat is up for grabs. Among the candidates: Public Service Commissioner Scott Angelle, R-Breaux Bridge; Greg Ellison (R), Gus Rantz (R), Grover Rees (R), Brett Geymann (R), Scott Angelle (R), Clay Higgins, Larry Rader (D), and Dorian Phibian (D).
  • 4th District: Like Boustany, Fleming vacates his seat to pursue the Senate job. Among those vying for his district is: Shreveport attorney Marshall Jones, Shreveport cardiologist Trey Baucum, former state Sen. Elbert Guillory of Opelousas, Shreveport City Councilman Oliver Jenkins, Shreveport attorney Rick John and state Rep. Mike Johnson of Benton.
  • 5th District: Incumbent Ralph Abraham (R-Alto) faces Republican Billy Burkette of East Feliciana Parish, chairman of the tribe for the Louisiana Band of Choctaw Indians.
  • 6th District: Incumbent Garret Graves (R-Baton Rouge) will face Robert Lamar Bell (R), Richard Lieberman (D), Jermaine Sampson (D), Richard Fontanesi (L), and Devin Lance Graham (Other).

Supreme Court 

Two districts are electing Supreme Court justices this year–Louisiana’s Supreme Court justices serve 10-year terms. Here’s a map of the districts.

3rd District: Third Circuit of Appeals Judge Jimmy Genovese, of Opelousas, and State District Judge Marilyn Castle, of Lafayette, are competing for Associate Justice Jeannette Theriot Knoll’s seat. Knoll is retiring this year.

4th District: Justice Marcus R. Clark is running unopposed for re-election.