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Louisiana Disqualify Candidates with Felony Convictions Amendment (2018)
| Louisiana Disqualify Candidates with Felony Convictions Amendment | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 6, 2018 | |
| Topic Elections and campaigns | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin State legislature |
The Louisiana Disqualify Candidates with Felony Convictions Amendment was not on the ballot in Louisiana as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 6, 2018.
The measure would have disqualified those with felony convictions from holding elected office or appointed office until eight years after the completion of their sentences.[1]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title would have been as follows:[1]
| “ | Do you support an amendment to prohibit a person convicted of a felony from qualifying as a candidate for elective public office or holding elective public office or appointment of honor, trust, or profit within eight years of the completion of his sentence unless he is pardoned? (Adds Article I, Section 10(B), (C), and (D)[2] | ” |
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article I, Louisiana Constitution
The measure would have added Subsections (B), (C), and (D) to Section 10 of Article I of the Louisiana Constitution. The following text would have been added:[1] Note: Hover over the text and scroll to see the full text.
...
(B) Disqualification. The following persons shall not be permitted to qualify as a candidate for elective public office or hold elective public office or appointment of honor, trust, or profit in this state:
- (1) A person who has been convicted within this state of a felony or been convicted under the laws of any other state or of the United States or of any foreign government or country of a crime which, if committed in this state, would be a felony, who has exhausted all legal remedies, and who has not afterwards been pardoned either by the governor of this state or by the officer of the state, nation, government, or country having such authority to pardon in the place where the person was convicted and sentenced.
- (2) A person actually under an order of imprisonment for conviction of a felony.
(C) Exception. The provisions of Subparagraph (B)(1) of this Section shall not prohibit a person convicted of a felony from qualifying as a candidate for elective public office or holding such elective public office or appointment of honor, trust, or profit if more than eight years have elapsed since the completion of his original sentence for the conviction.
(D) The provisions of Paragraph (B) of this Section shall not prohibit a person from being employed by the state or a political subdivision.[2]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Amending the Louisiana Constitution
In Louisiana, a two-thirds vote in both chambers of the Louisiana State Legislature during one legislative session is required to refer a constitutional amendment to the ballot. Louisiana is one of 16 states that require a two-thirds supermajority in each chamber of the legislature. Rep. Gregory Miller (R-56) filed the amendment in the state legislature as House Bill 351 (HB 351) on March 31, 2017. The Louisiana House of Representatives approved the bill, 93 to 1 with 11 members absent, on May 10, 2017. The measure did not receive a vote in the Louisiana Senate[3]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Louisiana Legislature, "House Bill 351," accessed May 11, 2017
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Louisiana Legislature, "HB 351 Overview," accessed May 11, 2017
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State of Louisiana Baton Rouge (capital) |
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