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Laws governing local ballot measures in Louisiana

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Laws governing ballot measures in the U.S.
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Laws governing ballot measures in the U.S.

Changes to laws governing ballot measures

Types of ballot measures

Ballot measure policy topics

Select a state from the dropdown to learn more about laws governing ballot measures in that state.

This page describes the state constitutional provisions and statutes that govern local ballot measures in Louisiana. Jurisdictions often establish additional rules within the parameters of state law; those can be found in local ordinances and home-rule charters.

Explore the links below for more information:

Law

The Louisiana Constitution and Louisiana Revised Statutes establish the rules that govern local ballot measures in the state.

General

The following outlines the general rules that govern local ballot measures in Louisiana, including both citizen-initiated measures and referred measures from local government bodies.

  • Election timing: In Louisiana, elections for charter amendments must be held at least 60 days after the proposal is published and must be held at a date in accordance with R.S. 18:402 for a primary or general election, special election, or bond tax, or other election.[1]
  • Vote requirements: All local ballot measures in Louisiana require a simple majority vote to be approved.[2]
  • Required ballot measures:
    • Article VI of the Louisiana Constitution requires voter-approved ballot measures for the following:
      • Adopting, amending, or repealing a home rule charter.
      • Issuing general obligation bonds.
      • Consolidating, merging, or incorporating municipalities.
    • The Louisiana Revised Statutes require voter-approved ballot measures for the following:[3][4][5]
      • Establishing term limits for elected officials in municipalities with populations between 2,500 and 5,000 residents that are also within a parish of a population between 200,000 and 250,000 residents.
      • Establishing term limits for elected officials within the city of Harahan.
      • Transferring the powers of local public utility from a municipality to the Louisiana Public Service Commission.

What is a parish? A parish is analogous to what other states refer to as a county.

Initiatives

The following outlines the general rules that govern local citizen-initiated ballot measures in Louisiana.

  • Authority: R.S. 1395 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes grants voters the authority to submit proposals for charter amendments via a charter commission.[1]
  • Signatures: All signatures must be signed by at least 10% of the electors or or ten thousand electors, whichever is fewer.[1]
  • Deadline: Petitions must be submitted to the parish registrar of voters within 180 days of the date of the first signature.[1]

Referrals

The following outlines the general rules that govern local referred ballot measures in Louisiana.

  • Authority: R.S. 1395 of the Louisiana Revised States grants the governing body of local municipalities the authority to submit charter amendments by appointing a charter commission.[1]
  • Deadline: There are no statewide deadlines for referrals. Specific deadlines are published in local statutes.

Laws governing local ballot measures in the U.S.

Laws governing local ballot measures in the United States

As state laws govern ballot measures, the rules are different from state to state. Click on a state below to explore that state's laws on local ballot measures.

http://ballotpedia.org/Laws_governing_local_ballot_measures_in_STATE

See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Louisiana State Legislature, "Louisiana Revised Statutes, RS 33:1395," accessed December 8, 2025
  2. ↑ Ballotpedia, "Article VI, Louisiana Constitution," accessed December 8, 2025
  3. ↑ Louisiana State Legislature, "Louisiana Revised Statutes, RS 33:383.3," accessed December 8, 2025
  4. ↑ Louisiana State Legislature, "Louisiana Revised Statutes, RS 33:383.1," accessed December 8, 2025
  5. ↑ Louisiana State Legislature, "Louisiana Revised Statutes, RS 33:4491," accessed December 8, 2025
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