Louisiana voters rejected four measures on Saturday, March 29. The amendments were rejected with an average of 35% of voters in favor and 65% opposed.
A two-thirds vote in each legislative chamber was required to put the amendments on the ballot. All four of the amendments were passed with all Republican legislators in favor, while most Democrats opposed them.
Amendment 1
Amendment 1 would have authorized the Louisiana Supreme Court to discipline out-of-state lawyers for unethical legal practices in the state and provide the court with the power to establish trial courts of limited and specialized jurisdiction. The amendment was defeated with 65% of voters opposed and 35% in favor.
Amendment 2
Amendment 2 would have revised Article VII of the state constitution, making changes to taxes and the state budget. Voters defeated the measure with 65% voting against and 35% in favor.
The amendment was proposed as part of a package of bills, supported by Gov. Jeff Landry (R), passed in 2024 and designed to change the state’s taxation policy. House Bill 10, which took effect upon the governor’s signature on December 4, 2024, and which applies to tax years beginning on January 1, 2025, changed the state’s income tax rate structure from a graduated rate to a flat rate of 3%. The amendment would have decreased the maximum income tax rate in the constitution from 4.25% to 3.75%.
The amendment would have also established a government growth limit, prohibiting spending state general fund recurring revenues above the limit. Louisiana has an expenditure limit, enacted in 1993, which limits expenditures to equal the present expenditure limit multiplied by the annual percentage rate of change of personal income from the three prior calendar years. Revenue in excess of the limit is deposited into a reserve fund.
The amendment would have provided in the state constitution that, “as provided by law, participating employers in the Teachers’ Retirement System of Louisiana shall provide a permanent salary increase to eligible personnel.”
Gov. Jeff Landry said, “Soros and far left liberals poured millions into Louisiana with propaganda and outright lies about Amendment 2. Although we are disappointed in tonight’s results, we do not see this as a failure. We realize how hard positive change can be to implement in a State that is conditioned for failure.”
William Most, an attorney who filed an unsuccessful lawsuit to remove Amendment 2 from the ballot, said, “I think this is a full-throated rejection of attempts to trick Louisiana voters into voting for something they don’t want. … This sends a clear message that if state officials want to change our constitution, they can’t do it through trickery or deceit.”
Amendment 3
In Louisiana, the state constitution lists certain crimes that the legislature can exclude from special juvenile procedures with a two-thirds vote. Under Amendment 3, the list would have been removed from the constitution, and instead, the legislature would have been authorized to determine in state law which crimes could result in a juvenile being tried as an adult.
The amendment was defeated with 66% of voters opposed and 34% in favor.
Amendment sponsor Sen. Heather Cloud (R-28) said, “This is very important legislation. It builds upon successes that we’ve already achieved that are critical to the overall well-being and safety and security of our state for today and for future generations.”
The Vera Institute of Justice Inc. raised $400,000 to oppose Amendment 3.
Sarah Omojola, Louisiana director for the Vera Institute, said, “In defeating Amendment 3, voters made clear their desire for the things that actually make our communities safer — like quality education and opportunity.”
Amendment 4
The state constitution requires the governor to call a special election within 12 months after the day the vacancy occurs. Amendment 4 would have provided that judicial vacancies should be filled by calling a special election at the earliest available date pursuant to state law.
Voters defeated the measure with 64% opposed and 36% in favor.
The Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana Voter Guide cited arguments in support of the amendment: “Amending the constitution is a better approach than tweaking the closed primary law. If the law is adjusted instead to allow the governor to call a special election that doesn’t coincide with the regular election calendar, Louisiana could be forced to spend additional dollars to comply with the constitutional mandate to elect a new judge within a year.”
Say No! to Them All stated in opposition: “The move in Amendment 4 to change the election dates for judges is another ploy to make it easier for Baton Rouge politicians to get their friends elected when few voters are paying attention.”
Odd-year ballot measures in Louisiana
From 2003 to 2023, 48 constitutional amendments appeared on the statewide ballot. Voters approved 33 (68.75%) and rejected 15 (31.25%). During this period, an average of four amendments appeared on the Louisiana ballot in odd-numbered years.
Historically, odd-numbered-year ballot measures have less voter turnout than even-year elections in Louisiana. For example, in 2024, the ballot measure with the highest number of votes (1,871,151) was decided on Nov. 5, which was a Tuesday during a presidential election year. The four other ballot measures that year were decided on Dec. 7 and had a lower number of votes, with 332,181 being the highest recorded. Dec. 7 was also a Saturday.
The same trend held in 2022: with ballot measures on Nov. 8 (a Tuesday, midterm election) garnered voter turnout as high as 1,335,315. The three measures decided on Saturday, Dec. 10, hit a voter turnout high of 428,486.
In the last two odd-year elections—2023 and 2021—voters decided on all ballot measures on Saturdays in either October or November.
Neither year had voter turnout as high as that of an even year. In 2021, the highest number of votes was Amendment 1 with 413,714 votes. In 2023, it was Amendment 2, with 1.0 million votes.
This year, the measure with the highest number of votes was Amendment 2, with 634,168 votes—224,085 in favor and 410,083 against.