A special election has been called to fill the Louisiana House District 69 vacancy after Republican Baton Rouge state Rep. Paula Davis announced her resignation.

Louisiana Secretary of State Nancy Landry says she has worked to improve the state’s election system since her first day in office, even as she acknowledges it is outdated.

There are four open seats in the Louisiana House and one open seat in the Louisiana Senate after a handful of lawmakers resigned their posts this fall to pursue other jobs.

Voting rights group says Parish Prison inmates, yet to be convicted of a felony, should be allowed to cast absentee ballots from the jail if they can’t vote in person for the first time.

Louisiana Secretary of State Nancy Landry announced changes to the state’s election process for 2026, switching select key races from an open-primary system to a closed primary system.

A special primary election will be held May 16 for vacant state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and state Supreme Court seats.