The Louisiana State Legislature passed a constitutional amendment proposal on Thursday that seeks to ban the use of private money in the conduction of elections.
HB 311 stipulates that “[n]o funds, goods, or services donated by a foreign government or a nongovernmental source shall be used to conduct elections unless provided for in the election code and subject to restrictions provided by general law.” Following a series of last-minute legislative procedures, the measure successfully cleared the House (79-19) and Senate (27-12) with the two-thirds majority support required to advance constitutional amendment proposals and will now appear on the ballot for the state’s Oct. 14 elections.
If approved by voters, the amendment would enshrine the ban on private election funding in the Louisiana Constitution.
“With the passage of HB 311, the Republican legislative supermajority in Louisiana took a strong step today towards prohibiting the use of foreign and private funds to pay for any part of our election system,” bill sponsor and GOP Rep. Blake Miguez told The Federalist. “In October, the voters of Louisiana will get a voice in strengthening election integrity in our beloved State.”
Andy Roth, the president of the State Freedom Caucus Network, also celebrated the measure’s passage and highlighted the diligent collaboration between the Louisiana Freedom Caucus and voter integrity groups such as the Election Transparency Initiative and the Association of Mature American Citizens.
“The State Freedom Caucus Network has been working with the Louisiana Freedom Caucus, as well as the Election Integrity Network, to help build local
