The
Clerk of Court is the chief election officer of the parish, and a
member of the Board of Election Supervisors, and also a custodian
of voting machines. The Board of Election Supervisors consists of
the Registrar of Voters, the Clerk of Court, the Parish Chairmen
of the Democratic and Republican parties, and one member is appointed by the Governor.
There
are 99 precincts in St. Landry Parish. The Absentee votes count
as 1 precinct. The Board of Election Supervisors selects commissioners-in-charge,
commissioners, and alternate commissioners at random from a list
of persons who have been certified by the Clerk. This is done at
a public meeting of the Board of Election Supervisors.
Prior
to an election, the Clerk is responsible for sealing the voting
machines and assuring that they are delivered to the proper precinct.
On
election day, the Clerk's office is open from 5:00 a.m. till all
returns have been tabulated. In-house voting machine mechanics
and personnel are available to assist voters and commissioners
throughout the day.
After
precincts have closed, tabulation sheets are brought to the Clerk's
office by commissioners-in-charge and entered into the Clerk's
and Secretary of State's computers for final results.
Post
election activities include opening and rechecking seals on voting
machines, verifying voting machine totals with those turned in
by commissioners-in-charge, returning machines to warehouse, and
forwarding election results to the Board of Election Supervisors. |