Top of the ticket

Lucas Buller was born to be in politics.
The 46-year-old Ville Platte native was raised in a political environment as his father Larry Buller, was one of the longest serving Police Jurors in the parish’s history. The elder Buller exposed his children to politics, including even having them help campaign for him.
“My dad made us go door to door during election and give people campaign literature,” Buller said. “I remember my brothers and I passing campaign cards in the parking lot of the courthouse, that was before we had the 600-foot restriction of course.”
Buller is now gearing up for yet another presidential election, his third, as the Evangeline Parish Registrar of Voters, a position he has held since 2007.
“It is exciting,” Buller said. “My staff and I prepare all year for this. No matter who is running or what the races are about it is always a really exciting time.”
After graduating from Ville Platte High in the spring of 1988, and briefly attending LSU at Eunice, Buller got a job cutting grass at the old Federal Savings Bank in Ville Platte. Buller though didn’t spend too much time mowing the bank’s small plot of grass.
“One day I was cutting the grass and one of the bank presidents walked outside and asked me if I wanted a job inside the building,” Buller remembered. “The president said come see me when I was finished and that’s how I got a job at the bank.”
It didn’t take long for the then-20-year-old to move up the ladder. Buller started off as a teller then moved up to data processing, bookkeeping and by the time he left in 2000 he held the title of Assistant Vice President.
In 2000, Buller left his job at the bank and took the position of Project Manager in Parish Engineer Ronnie Landreneau’s office, which helped Buller reconnect with his father’s passion for politics.
In 2004, Buller was elected to the Board of Election Supervisors, a position he held in that capacity until he became Registrar, a position that also serves on the board.
“The board oversees the entire election process,” Buller said. “From sealing the voting machines to early voting, the board is involved with the whole nine yards.”
Then in 2007, Ted Soileau, who had served as Registrar of Voters for 17 years, opted to run for Evangeline Parish Sheriff which meant that the parish had a vacancy to fill.
“It was a good and stable job that I could raise two kids while having,” said Buller. “I wanted the job and I had to go fight for it. I had to prove to the Police Jury that I was the right person for the job.”
By a vote of 5-4, the Evangeline Police Jury appointed Buller as the new Registrar of Voters.
But just because Buller is appointed doesn’t mean that his position is one that he is guaranteed to have forever.
“I am not appointed for life,” Buller said. “If you get a job at Walmart and you are a good employee then you will probably have a job for life. If you don’t do a good job then you won’t. If I don’t do my job well then I could be removed.”
The biggest challenge that Buller and his staff of four face is making sure the office remains update with the ever-changing election code.
“The challenge is actually staying in compliance with the election code,” Buller said. “It is something that changes every year with voting issues and technology. It is a document that changes each and every year.”
“He truly worries about the voters and making sure the voting process is done right,” said Nicole Fontenot-Fruge, who works as a Confidential Assistant in the Registrar’s Office. “He really cares about voter rights.”
The other challenge for his office is making sure that registered voters actually vote in the districts that they reside in, which can be tricky with property annexations and new subdivisions.
“The law requires us to verify where they live,” Buller said. “We have roughly 22,000 registered voters in Evangeline Parish. So we work with the U.S. Postal Service in an attempt to verify the address. Canvassing is a big deal.”
Despite the excitement of an election, the most gratifying part of his job is when he and his staff work with the parishes’ schools, whether that is handling the school elections or voter registration for high school students.
“It is very satisfying,” said Buller, who was the first person to cast his vote during the early voting period. “We conduct private elections for homecoming at Ville Platte High and Mamou. We are not mandated to do it but we do it as a courtesy.
“We also have voter education week and that gives a chance to register them at 17-years-old so they can vote when they become 18. It gives us the opportunity to get young people interested in politics.”