Louisiana has since the 1970s had an open primary system for electing its public officials, whereby candidates (regardless of party) run on the same primary and/or general election ballot. That system was modified over a year ago, when a “semi closed” primary with party primaries/runoffs/general elections was resuscitated for “top of the ballot” offices like U.S. Senate, U.S. House, PSC (Public Service Commission), BESE (the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education), and the Louisiana Supreme Court.

There has been chatter about adding statewide elected officials to those subject to the “semi closed primary” system, and JMC Analytics and Polling was recently commissioned by Unite America to poll Louisianians about the state’s open primary system/making additional modifications to that current system. Major takeaways from that poll are as follows:

(1) Louisiana’s open primary system remains overwhelmingly favored by voters – regardless of the respondent’s party affiliation,

(2) There is minimal voter appetite for changing to a closed primary for any additional offices,

(3) An absolute majority of voters would still be less likely to favor an elected official who wants to change from the current open primary system, and

(4) a minority (only 34%) of voters are even AWARE of modifications made to the open primary system last year. This creates the possibility of substantial confusion about the new rules for the April 2026 primary.

The actual poll itself can be found here.