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The Free ID That Lets You Vote Goes Away Next Summer. Get Yours Now.

• Politics & Voting • No Comments

Right now in Louisiana, if you show up to vote without a photo ID, you can sign a form and vote anyway. It is called a Voter Identification Affidavit. You confirm who you are, you sign it, you vote. Nobody can turn you away.

On July 1, 2027, that goes away.

After that date, showing up without a photo ID means you cannot vote at your regular polling place. You have to go to the Registrar of Voters office instead, bring additional documents, and cast what is called a conditional ballot. Then you have 48 hours to come back and prove who you are. Miss that window and your vote does not count.

The ID is free. Most people do not know that.

If you are a registered voter, the Louisiana special identification card costs you nothing. Not a discount. Free.

Bring your voter information card to any Office of Motor Vehicles and ask for the free special ID card for voters. If you do not have your voter information card, the Registrar of Voters will issue you one.

That is the whole process. One trip, no fee.

Where to go in New Orleans

Office of Motor Vehicles

100 Veterans Blvd, New Orleans, LA 70124 — (504) 483-1870
Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM

7500 Bullard Ave, Suite 104, New Orleans, LA 70128 — (504) 243-7501
Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Make an appointment online before you go and get there early. Walk-in waits run long at both.

Registrar of Voters

City Hall — 1300 Perdido Street, Room 1W24, New Orleans, LA 70112

Algiers Courthouse — 225 Morgan Street, Room 105, New Orleans, LA 70114 — (504) 658-8323 — (504) 658-8300

Who this hits hardest

If you drive, you already have what you need and this does not change anything for you.

The people affected are the ones who do not drive. Older folks who let a license lapse years ago. People who get around by bus or by ride. Anyone who has moved recently and never updated anything. People coming home after incarceration. Students. If that is you, or somebody in your house, the affidavit was the thing standing between you and a ballot, and it is on a clock now.

Eleven months sounds like plenty. It is not, if you only think about voting in the week before an election. The OMV is not open on weekends.

Need help getting one?

VoteRiders is a nonprofit that helps people get the ID they need to vote, including paying for underlying documents like a birth certificate if that is what is holding you up. Free. VoteRiders Louisiana.

One more thing on the 2026 ballot

Separate from the ID change, Louisiana switched to closed party primaries this year for four offices: U.S. Senate, U.S. House, Louisiana Supreme Court, and the Public Service Commission. For those races you only get candidates from your own registered party. If you are registered with no party, those races may not show up on your primary ballot at all.

Mayor, District Attorney, Sheriff, City Council, School Board, and judges are not affected. Everybody votes for everybody in those.

The short version

  • You can still vote without photo ID until July 1, 2027. Ask for the Voter Identification Affidavit.
  • After that, no photo ID means a trip to the Registrar and a 48-hour clock.
  • The Louisiana state ID is free for registered voters. Bring your voter information card to the OMV.
  • Do it now, not in the week before an election.

Full details on registering, early voting, what each office does, and where to vote are in our How To Vote in New Orleans guide.

Verified July 2026. Deadlines and rules change — confirm current dates with the Louisiana Secretary of State.

ODDUSEE