New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1852-08-27
CONSTITUTION
OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA.
adopted in Convention July 81, 1862.

WIN . j. L. U HUN
OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
adopted in Convention July 81, 1862.
PREAMBLE.
We the people of the State of Louisiana, do or.
dain and establish this Constitution
TITLE I.
DISTRIBUTION OF POWERS.
ART l. The powers Of the government OF the State
Of Lon siana shall be divided into three distinct de-
par,meats, and each Of them be conf1ea to separ-
ate DO " Of nagistracy, to-,vit: those which are
Legislative to one, those which Executive an
other. and those which are Judicial to another.
ART 2 No Of these Departments, nor any
person holding office in OF them, shall exercise
power properly belongngto either of the others, ex
cept in the instances hereinafter expressly directed
OF permitted.
TITLE II.
LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT..
ART. 8. The Legislative power of the State shal
be vested in two distinct branches, the to bt
styled the House Of Representatives the sthe
the Senate, and both the General Assembly" Of the
State of Louisiana.
ART A. The members of the House of Represen
tatives shall continue in service for the term o
two years romthe day Of the closing of the genera
ART. S. Representatives shall be chosen on the
first Monday in November every two years; and the
election shall be completed in one day. The Gene
raj Assembly shall meet annually, the third
Monday in January, unless different day be ap-
pointed by law, and their sessions shall be held at
the seat Of government.
ART 8. Every duly qualified eector under this
Constitution, shall be eligible to seat in the Gem
eral Assembly, provided that no person shall be a
Representative Senator unless he be, at the time
OF his Gle sor duly qualified voter of the Repre-
sentative or Senatorial District from which he is elect
ART. 4 Elections for members of the General AS
semby shall be held at the several election pre-
cincts established by law. The Legislature may
delegate the power of establishing election precincts
to the parochial or municipal authorities
Arr. s. Representation in the House OF Repre-
sentatives shall be equal and uniform, and shall be
regulated and ascertained by the total population OF
each Of the several parishes Of the State Each par
ish shall have at least one Representative No new
parish shall be created with territory less thar six
hundred and twenty-five square miles, nor with a
population essthan the full number emitting it to
Representative, nor when the creation Of such
parish would leave any other parish without the
said extent of territory and amount of population.
The first enumeration by the State authorities un-
der this Constitution shall be made in the year 1858
the second in the year 1858, the third in the year
1865; after which time the General Assembly shall
direct in what manner :he shall be taken,
that it be made at least in every period of
years, for the purpose OF ascertanng the total popu-
lation in each parish and election district.
AT the first regular session of the Legislature after
the making Of each nxmeration, the Legislature shall
apportion the representation among the several par
shes and election districts on the basis of the tota
population. aforesaid. A representative number
shall be fixed and each parish and election district
shall have rs many Representatives its aggre-
gate population shall entitle it to, and additional
Representative for any fraction exceeding onehalf
the Representative number. The number of Re-
representatives. shall not be more than one hundred
nor less than seventy. Until an apportionment
shall be made, and elections held under the same
in accordance with the first enumeration to be made
as directed in this article, the Representation in
the Senate and House of Representatives shall be
and remain as at present established by law.
The limits of the Parish Of Orleans are hereby ex-
tended, SO az to embrace the whole Of the present
city Of New Orleans, including that part of the Pa
rish Of Jefferson formerly known the city OF La
fayette
All that part of the Parish of Orleans which is sit
uated 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 10 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 out Of the three Representatives
now apporaoned by law to the Parish Of Jefferson ;
the other Representative Districts shall remain as
they established.
ART.9. The House OF Representatives shall choose
its Speaker and other officers.
ART. 10. Every free white male who has attained
the age of twenty-onc years, and who has been a
resident Of the State twelve months next preceding
the election, and the last six months thereof in the
Parish in which he offers to vote and who shall be
citizen Of the United States, shall have the right of
voting but no voter removing from one Parish
to another within the State, shall lose the right of
voting in the former until he shall have acquired it in
the latter ELECTORS shall in all cases. except treason
felony, or breach Of the peace, be privileged from,
arrest during their attendance at going to- or return.
ing from elections
ART. II. The Legislature shall provide by law,
that the and residence OF all qualified electors
OF the city OF New Orleans shall be registered in or
der to entite them vote but the registry shall be
free Of cost to the elector.
ART IL. No soldier, seaman or marine in the army
or navy OF the United States, pauper, no person
under Introduction, under conviction of any crime
punishable with hard labor, shall be entitled to vote
at any election in this State.
ART. 49, operson shall be entitled to vote at any
election held in this State, except in the Parish of his
residence and in cities and towns divided into cleo.
ton precincts, in the election precinct in which he
resides.
ART H. The members Of the Senate shall be
chosen for the term Of four years. The Senate, when
assembled shall have the power to choose its officers
ART l5 The Legislature, in every year in which
they shall apporton representation in the House of
Representatives, shall divide the State into Senate
rial Districts. No Parish shall be divided in the
formation Of Senatorial Distrct-the Parish Of Or
leans excepted. And whenever a new Parish shall
be created, It shall be attached to the Senatorial Dis
erict from which most ofts territory was taken or to
another contiguous District, at the discretion Of the
Legislature, but shall not be attached to more than
one District The number of Senators shall be thirty
two, and they shall be apportoned among the Senate
rial Districts according to the total population con
tanned in the several Districts-Provded that no
Parish shall be entitled to more than five Senators
ART 10. In all apportonments of the Senate, the
population OF the city of New Orleans shall be deduc-
ted from the population of the whole State, and the
remainder Of the population divided by the number
twenty-seven, C27) and the result produced BY this
division shall be the Senatorial ratio emitting Sena.
teral District to Senator. Single or contiguous
Parishes shall be formed into Districts, having
population the nearest possible to the number en-.
fitting District to Senator; and if, in the appor
onment to be made. Parish District fall short of
or exceed the ratio one-ffth, then District may be
formed having not more than two Senator'S but not
osnetwise, No new superintendent shall have the
enect o. abridgng the term Of service of any Sena-
sor already elected at the time of making the appor-
tionment. After enumeration has been made as
directed IN the eighth Article the Legislature shall
NOT pass any law until opportionment of Repre-
sentation In both Houses of the General Assembly
be made.
ART. II. At the first session of the General As |
semfy after this Constitution takes effect the Sena
tors shall be equally divided by lot into two classes
The seats OF the Senators of the first class shall be
vacated at the expiration Of the second year of the
second class at the expiration OF the fourth YEAR so
that onehalf shall be chosen every two years. and !;
rotation thereby kept up perpetually In case any