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DeSoto Parish staff propose cutting precincts, polling places to reduce aging machines and costs
Summary
Clerks and registrar staff presented a plan to consolidate precincts in DeSoto Parish—reducing about 57 precincts to 26 and polling sites to 18—to lower the number of aging voting machines and payroll costs; jurors raised concerns about lines where voters would be concentrated and asked staff to return with maps and revised paperwork for a formal vote.
Registrar staff presented a plan to redraw and consolidate many voting precincts in DeSoto Parish aimed at cutting equipment needs and operating costs. The proposal would reduce the number of precincts used in the last election from 57 to 26 and shrink polling locations from 27 to 18, the registrar said.
The plan is driven by equipment and staffing constraints, Registrar staff said. "After the completion of canvass, the state requires us to do a survey of all of the precincts that have fewer than 300 registered voters in them," the registrar said, noting legal exemptions for geographically isolated or single-municipal precincts. Clerk Lisa Berson said the county is relying on legacy voting machines and parts are scarce: "We actually, as a practice, we use 2 [machines]" in small precincts, meaning consolidated sites would cut required machines from about 117 in the last election to a proposed 64.
Jurors and staff went through multiple map-based examples, correcting numbering and describing where voters would be reassigned. For west-end voters, staff proposed moving some residents from Shady Grove to nearby Magnolia or the Calista/Calhoun Center to reduce travel and eliminate a $150-per-election lease, and they walked jurors through the tradeoffs: "It would overall be approximately 5 miles closer for the furthest [voters]," the registrar said when explaining the Calista move.
Not all consolidations would reduce convenience: staff said four of the five precincts projected to remain under 300 voters are geographically isolated and cannot be merged under state rules. The registrar told the jury the proposed plan would leave five precincts with fewer than 300 voters, down from the current number under review.
Jurors pressed staff about capacity at high-volume polling sites. One juror said moving roughly 1,541 voters to North Desoto Pre K concerns him because the pre-K would be listed with 10 machines under the plan (down from 11 previously). Berson replied she could seek state approval to add machines if the jury approved the consolidation: "She can add another machine or two… the state has to approve, and I haven't been told no yet."
Staff outlined the next steps and timelines: after the jury selects changes to pursue, the clerk's office will draft an ordinance and seek preapproval from the secretary of state to confirm legal compliance; any changes cannot go into effect until after the November election cycle and staff suggested an ordinance effective date of Jan. 1, 2026. Jurors asked staff to return the revised plan for a formal vote; staff set internal deadlines to receive updated paperwork by Sept. 29 to place the item on an Oct. 6 agenda.
The workshop produced several specific assignments—map clarifications, a reassessment of where to keep or close the Stonewall Library polling location, and an updated machine request to the secretary of state—but no formal ordinance was adopted at the workshop. The jury voted to consider the recommended changes at a future meeting after staff returns with the requested documentation.
