New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1852-09-20
CON INSTITUTION
OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA.
adopted in Convention July 81, 1852.

PREAMBLE.
We, the people of the State of Louisiana, do or
lain and establish this Constitution
TITLE /.
DISTRIBUTION OF POWERS.
ART. l. The powers Of the government Of the State
VI Louisiana shall be divided into three distinct de-
and each Of them be confded to separ-
ate body of magistracy, to-wit: those which are
to one those which are Executive to
other and those which are Judicial to another.
ART No one OF these Departments, any
person holding office in o! them, shall exercise
power properly belonging to either otthe others, ex
cent in the instances hereinafter expressly directed
or permitted.
LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT.
ART. 8. The Legislative power of the State shall
be vested in two distinct branches, the one to be
styled the House Of Representatives, the other
the Senate, and both the General Assembly OF the
State of Louisiana.
ART.4 The members of the House of Represen-
tatives shall continue in service for the term Of
two years from the day of the closing of the general
elections.
Arr. S. Representatives shall be chosen on the
first Nj day in November every two years; and the
election ha | be completed in one day. The Gene
raj Ass. mby shall meet annually, on the third
Monday in January, unless different day be APP
pointed " law, and their sessions shall be held at
the seat # government.
ART. 6. Every duly qualified elector, under this
CONSTITUTE IN, shall be eligible to seat in the Gem
sral Assem- ,y, provided that person shall be a
Repres tive Senator unless he be, at the time
of his eli elton, duly qualified voter of the Repre-
sentative Senatorial District from which he is elect
ed.
ART T. Elections for members Of the General As.
sembly snail be held at the several election pre-
cincts es .abished by law The Legislature may
dslega the power Of establishing election precincts
to the arochial or municipal authorities
ART Representation in the House OF RepTe
sentative shall be equal and uniform, and shall be
y,pula ed and ascertained by the total population oil
each o. tie several parishes Of the State Each par
ish sh II have at least one Representative No new
parsh 4a be created with territory less than six
hundr.d and twenty-five square miles, nor with a
popu ii IN essthan the full number emitting it to
Repr. So sentative, when the creation OF such
new ar sh would leave any other parish without the
said 1t Of territory and amount OF population.
The f $, enumeration by the State authorities IN
der tn Constitution shall be made in the year 1858
the second in the year 1888, the third in the year
1865 alter which time the General Assembly shall
direc, in what the shall be taken, SC
that be made at least once in every period OF ten
years, fr the purpose Of tanning the total popu'
htion in each parish and election district
At the first regular session Of the Legislature, after
the making of each enumeration, the Legislature shall
appor.ion the among the several par.
shes election distfict4on the basis OF the total
-
shall BE- Fixed, and each parish and election district
shall have as many Representatives as its aggre.
gate population shall entite it to. and an additional
Representative for any fraction exceeding one-ha
the Representative number. The number OF Re
presc tatives shall not be more than one hundred
nor lss than seventy. Until an apportionmen
shall . made and elections held under the same
in ac orlance with the first enumeration to be mads
as directed in this article, the Representation il
the Senate and House of Representatives shall bt
and remain at present established by law
The limits of the Parish Of Orleans are hereby ex
tended, SO to embrace the whole of the present
city Of New Orleans, including that part of the Pa
rish of Jefferson, formerly known as the city of La
fayette.
All that part of the Parish of Orleans which is sit
mated on the left bank of the Mississippi river shall
be divided by the Legislature into not more than
ten Representative Districts and until apPor-
tionment shall be made according TO the first CEN
sus to be taken under this Constitution that part
Of the city Of New Orleans which was comprised
within the former limits Of the city OF Lafayette,
shall vote for Senators from the Parish of Orleans
and form the Tenth Representative District, and
shall elect two ont of the three Representatives
now apportioned by law to the Parish of Jefferson
the other Representative Districts shall remain a!
they now established.
ART.9. The House Of Representatives. shall choos
It's Speaker and other officers.
ART. 10. Every free white male who mas attaine
the age of twenty-0ne years, and who has been
resident of the State twelve months next precedn!
the election, and the last six months thereof in tn
Parish in which he offers to vote, and who shall be
citizen of the United States, shall have the right o
voting; but voter removing from one Parsl
to another within the State, shall lose the right
voting in the former until he shall have acquired it il
the latter. Electors shall in all cases, except
felony, or breach of the peace be privileged from
arrest during their attendance at going return
ing from elections
ART. IL. The Legislature shall provide by law
that the names and residence of all qualified eector
of the city OF New Orleans, shall be registered in
der entle them to vote but the registry shall b
free OF cost to the elector.
ART. ~. No soldier, seaman marine in the arm
or navy of the United States, no pauper no perso
under Introduction, under conviction Of any Grim
punishable with hard labor shall be entitled to vol
at any election in this State.
ART 10, Noperson shall be entitled to vote at an
election held in this Stale except IN the Parish of hi
residence, and in cities and towns divided into elec
ton precincts, in the election precinct in which
resides.
ART. IA. The members of the Senate shall b
chosen for the term of four years. The Senate, whe
assembled, shall have the power to choose its officers
ART. Is. The Legislature, in every year in whicl
they shall apportion representation in the House
Representatives, shall divide the State into Senate
rial Districts. No Parish shall be divided in til
formation ola Senatorial Dstrict-,he Parish Of Or
leans excepted. And whenever Parish sha
be created it shall be attached the Senatorial D,
trict from which gifts territory taken or
another contiguous District, al the discretion of I'll
Legislature but shall not be attached to tina
District The number of Senators shall be thirt
two, and they shall be apPortioned among the Senat
rial Districts according to the total population CO
tanned in the several Distficts-Provided, that
Parish shall be entitled to than five Senators.
ART. 16. In all apportionments of the Senate, Il
population OF the city OF New Orleans shall be dedu
ted from the population OF the whole State, and Il
remainder Of the population divided by the numb
twenty-seven, en- and the result produced by tn
division shall be the Senatorial ratio emitting Sen
torial Districtstoa Senator. Single or conuguo,
Parishessshalt ~ formed into Districts, having
population The nearest possible to the nunber ell
titing aaDistfict to Senator and it, in the appo
tionnent ~ be made Parish or District fall short
or exceed the ratio one-ifth, then District may |
formed having not more than two Senator'S but n,
otherwise No new apportiontnent shall have ii
effect of abridgng the term of service of any SEM
tor already elected at the time of making the Apo
tionment After an enumeration has been made ;
directed in the eighth Article, the Legislature shs
not pass any law until an opportionment of Repr
sentation in both Houses of the General Assent
BE- nads.
ART. II. AT the first session of the General A
semby after this Constitution takes effect, the Sen
tors shall be equally divided by lot into class
The seats of the Senators of the first class shall
vacated at the expiration OF the second year of
second class, at the expiration of the fourth year
that one half shall BE- chosen every two years, ant
rotation thereby kept up perpetually In case a
District shall have elected two or more Senate
said Senators shall their seats respectively
the end OF two and four years. and lets shall be dra,
between them.