At the State Archives building in Baton Rouge Friday, voters were standing in line before polls opened at 8:30 a.m. Among them was Amber Airosa. The mother of four says each election she brings one of her children to the polls. This year was her 2-year-old daughter Ari’s turn.
“To talk to them, just a little bit, as much as they can understand, about voting and choices. Her father is an immigrant, one of the American Dreams so it’s important to him as well that we teach them about voting and the rights that they have,” said Airosa.
Airosa says her husband immigrated here legally and that he’s also a proud business owner.
While Ari might be a bit too young to understand why she stood in line, her mom says she is very aware of the state’s “I Voted” sticker. This election features a crawfish in a top hat. His name is Mark D. Ballot.
“Every year the kids all ask about the sticker, and the designs and how it relates to Louisiana. From the Blue Dog to the pelican sticker, they’ve seen them all,” Airosa said.
From start to finish, it took the pair about an hour to vote and Airosa says Ari was well-behaved the whole time. She thinks Mark D. Ballot played a big part with that.
“Say this is a big motivation actually. Including whenever we leave, we have to ask for stickers for everyone at home,” Airosa said with a big smile, but not as big as Ari’s.
Demetria Jones-Smith and her father also wanted to participate on the first day of early voting.
“I think it’s an enormous opportunity to show how excited we are about this election, and just how excited we are about the opportunity to vote, that we live in a democracy and that we have the opportunity to do so.” Jones-Smith said.
She says it’s important to set an example.
“Particularly in the African-American community, the fact that our great-great-great-grandparents struggled to even be in this position to be able to vote,” said Jones-Smith.
Jones-Smith said she’s hopeful because of the wide age range of people she’s seen interested in this election.
“From young to our most seasoned saints, people want to make sure that they demonstrate the fact this is an opportunity, this is a privilege and that we want to preserve the democracy that we have,”
Early voting will be open through Oct. 29, every day but Sunday.
A list of early voting locations in each parish is available on the state’s online voter portal.
And here's a list of locations in Baton Rouge:
- Motor Vehicle Building, 2250 Main Street, Baker
- Fire Station Building, 11010 Coursey Boulevard, Baton Rouge
- Louisiana State Archives Building, 3851 Essen Lane, Baton Rouge
- Central Branch Library, 11260 Joor Road, Baton Rouge
- Baton Rouge City Hall, 222 St Louis Street (Room 607), Baton Rouge
