Election Day for the open general/special primary is today, Saturday, Dec. 8, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

All Washington Parish voters will be eligible to vote in the special election for Louisiana Secretary of State. The candidates are Kyle Ardoin, the interim incumbent and a Republican, and Gwen Collins-Greenup, a Democrat.

All Bogalusa voters can participate in the runoff election for mayor, between incumbent Wendy Perrette and challenger Doug Ritchie. In addition, voters in District C will decide whether their next council member will be Oneita Graham or Shelby Temples.

Bogalusa voters will also have the chance to vote on three tax propositions, which state the following options:

• Authorize the levy of a new 3-mill property tax in the city for the purpose of paying retirement and pension benefits to the City of Bogalusa Employees Retirement System (COBERS).
• Rededicate 12.5 percent of the city’s 1-percent sales tax approved at an election held on March 15, 1955, for the purpose of paying retirement and pension benefits to COBERS.
• Rededicate half of the city’s 1/4-percent sales tax approved at an election held on Nov. 17, 2007, for the purpose of paying retirement and pension benefits to COBERS.

Voters in Washington Parish District 5 will choose between Thomas R. “Rusty” Fornea and Randy Thomas as their new council member.

Finally, voters in the town of Franklinton will vote on five separate resolutions concerning alcohol sales within the town limits.

In preparation for today Election Day activities, Interim Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin is encouraging voters to remember:

• Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. Anyone in line at 8 p.m. will be allowed to vote.
• Voters can find their polling location and sample ballot by downloading the GeauxVote Mobile app for smartphones or by visiting www.GeauxVote.com.
• Voters can also sign up for text alerts via GeauxVote Mobile.
• Voters should bring an ID with them to vote (Louisiana driver’s license, Louisiana Special ID card, a generally recognized picture identification card with name and signature such as a passport or a digital license via LA Wallet). Voters without an ID will be required to fill out an affidavit, but will be allowed to vote.
• Election results can be viewed in real-time via GeauxVote Mobile or the secretary of state’s website at www.sos.la.gov.

“We’re expecting turnout to be around 18 to 20 percent,” Ardoin said. “Even though congressional elections are over, there are still important candidate races and propositions on the ballot. I hope every Louisiana voter will participate in tomorrow’s election.”

There are 134 candidate runoffs in 47 parishes across the state. Of the remaining 17 parishes, eight only have secretary of state on the ballot and nine have secretary of state and a proposition on the ballot.