House Bill No. 212 proposes amendments to the laws governing recall elections in Louisiana. The bill establishes that no recall petition may be filed within the first six months of an elected official's term. It also modifies the signature requirements for recall petitions, stipulating that the number of signatures needed will be based on the number of electors who voted in the most recent election for that official, rather than a fixed percentage of the total number of electors in the voting area. Specifically, if fewer than 1,000 electors voted in the last election, the petition must be signed by that same number of voters. If 1,000 or more voted, the petition must be signed by at least 1,000 electors or 50% of those who voted, whichever is greater.

Additionally, the bill requires the Secretary of State to report the number of electors who voted in the last election for the official in question, rather than the total number of qualified electors in the voting area. The registrar of voters will also certify the number of signatures on the petition based on the same criteria. The governor is mandated to issue a proclamation for a recall election if the required number of signatures is met, calculated from the totals provided by the registrars of voters. Overall, the bill aims to streamline the recall process while ensuring that it is not initiated prematurely in an official's term.

Statutes affected:
HB212 Original: 18:2(B), 18:3(A), 18:7(A), 18:8(B)
HB212 Engrossed: 18:2(B), 18:3(A), 18:7(A), 18:8(B)
HB212 Reengrossed: 18:2(B), 18:3(A), 18:7(A), 18:8(B)