NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana could see the laws surrounding recall efforts change in the near future. State Rep. Paul Hollis, a Republican from Covington, said he’s planning to author a bill that would set the number of signatures needed for a recall based on how many people voted in the last general election.
Currently, Louisiana law sets up the number of signatures needed by tiers, which are based on how many registered voters are in that area.
So, in New Orleans, because there are more than 100,000 qualified electors, a recall campaign needs the signatures of 20% of voters. In a smaller town, with fewer than one-thousand registered voters, a recall effort would have to collect at least 40%.
“I do think that recalls… they should not be easy. They should be hard, but they shouldn’t be impossible,” said Rep. Hollis.
19 states plus the District of Columbia allow for recalling of state officials.
The rules vary. For example, in Alaska, the signature threshold is 25% of everyone who voted in the last general election.
In Georgia, 15% of voters are required to sign for a recall of a statewide office. 30% are required for local office.
Hollis said Louisiana’s way of calculating the number by registered voters is too high and too fluid a threshold.
“The issue with that is real simple. They can say, hey is this the time of the election? How many people are registered voters? Is it the time that you show up to file this recall? It’s almost like the goal posts are constantly changing,” he said.
Hollis’ bill would have hugely impacted the recall in New Orleans, because it would have drastically lowered the number of signatures needed to trigger a recall election.
The bill has not been pre-filed yet. The legislative session begins April 10.