New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1852-09-10
CONSTITUTION
OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA,
adopted N Comrention July 81, 1859.
sss PREAMBLE
We, the people Of the Stats Of Louisiana, DO or
aain and establish this Constitution
DISTRIBUTION OF powHns.

we, tno people OF the State OF Lousland, GO OF.
aain and establish this Constitution:
TITLE l.
DIsrRIHuTioN OF POWERS.
~ Ant. l. The powers OF the government off the State
Of Louisiana shall BE- divided into TIRES dianst de-
part,nsuts, and sach Of them DO conddsd to sepai
ate body Of mngistracy, to-wit: those which
Lepislatve 10 one those which ars Executive to an
other, and those which arc Judicial to another.
ART 8 No OF these Departments, nor an.
person hoding office in Of them, shall exercise
power properly belonging to sithsr Of the others,
sept in the instances hereinafter expressly directs
TITLE II. .-..=-.,....
LE0IgATfvE DEPARTMENT.
ART.3. The Legislative power of the State shall
be vested In two distinct branches, the one bt
styled the House Of Representatives., the othe,
the Senate, and both the General Assembly" Of the
State of Louisiana.
ARIA The members of the House Of RepreseI,-
tatves shall continue In service for the term e
two years from the day Of the closing of the genera
elections.
Art s. Representatives shall be chosen on ID.
first Monday il November every two years; and tht
election shall BIZ completed in day. The Gene
raj Assembly shtli meet annually, on the tbirt
Monday in Jai nay, unless different day be az
pointed BY law, aud their sessions shall be held d
the seat Of government.
ARr.6 Eve y duly qualified slector, under this
Constitution, ai be eligible seat in the Geu-
eral Assembly, provided that no person shall be- .
Representative or Senator rniess he be, at the tn
Of his election, duly qualified voter of the Repre-
sentative SCI atrial District from which he is elect
ed.
ART Eec ions for members Of the General As
semby shall hs held at the several election pre-
cincts established by law. The Legislature NAV
delegate the powe Of establishing election prscinet
to the parochia 0 municipal authorities.
Arts. Reples ntation in the House Of Repre-
sentatives shall be equal and uniform, and shall b.
regulated and ascertained by the total population
each Of the several parishes of the State. Each par
ish shall have at least Representative No new
parish shall be created with territory less than s
hundred and twenty five square miles, nor with I
population lessthan the full number entling i.
Representative, nor when the creation of suci
parish would leavs any other parish withon, til,
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 1853
the second in the year 1858, the third in the yea
1865 !; after which tine the General Assembly shal
direct in what manner :he census shall be taken, 81
that 1t be made at least once in every period of ter
years. for the purI Of asceraining the total pppn
latop in each parish and election district.
AT the FIRST regular session Of the Legislature afte
the making ofeach enumeration, the Leg isatus sSa
apporton the representation among the several pa
ishes and election districts the basis Of the
population. aforesaid "A representative numb,
shall be fixed, and each parish and election disric
shall have many Representatives as it's aggre
gate population shall enttle it to- and additions
Representative Tor any fraction exceeding one-ha'
the Representative number. The number OF Re
personalities shall not be than hundred
nor LEST than seventy. Until an apportionmet,
shall be made, and elections held under the same
In accordance with the first enumeration to be mad
directed in this article, the Represen ,aon il
the Senate and House of Representatives shall b.
and remain as at present established by law.
The limits Of the Parish of Orleans are hereby ex
Id Al 3
city Of New Orleans, including that part of the Pa
IRISH 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
be divided by the Legislature into not more than
ten Representative Districts, and until new appor.
t!onment shall be made according to the FIRST cen
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 out OF the three Representatives
now appnrtioned by law to the Parish of Jefferson
the other Representative Districts s.Asris,.an a,
they are now established.
ARr.9. The House Of Representatives shall stoos,
Its Speaker and other officers.
ART. 10. Every free white male who has a,taine,
the age OF twenty-one years, and who has been
resident Of the State twelve months next precedn,
the election, and the last months thereof in thu
Parish in which he ofers to vote, and who sha be
citizen of the United States, shall have the right .
voting but no voter on removing from Paris!
to another within the State, shall lose the ryh
voting in the former unthc ahal! have acquired il
the latter. Electors shall in all cases. except treason
felony, or breach OF the peace, be privileged from
arrest during their attendance al going to- or return
ing from elections.
ART. IL. The Legislature shall provide by law
that The names and residence OF all anaied electors
of his ,f DfIu
der 10 enttle them vote; but the registry shall b,
free ofcost to the elector
ART. IL. No soldier seaman marine in the army
or navy OF the United States, no pauper no person
under interdction under conviction of any crime
punishable with hard labor, shall ts entitled to vote
at any election in this State.
ART. - Noperson shall be entitled to vote at any
election held in this Stale, except in the Parish his
residence, and in cities and towns divided into rlrc-
ton precincts, in the election precinct IN which he
resides.
AIT. ID. This members of the Senate shall be
chosen tor the term of Tour years. The Senate when
assembled shall have the power to choose its officers
ART. Is The Legislature, in every wear in which
they shall apprtion representation in the House of
Representatives, shall divide the State into Senate.
rial DISTRICTS No Parish shall be divided in the
formation Of Senatorial Disrict--,he Parish OF Or.
leans excepted. And whenever new Parish shall
be created, it shall be attached TO the Senatorial DIS
trct from which most ofts territory was taken or tc
another contiguous District, the discretion Of the
Legislature, but shall not be attached to more than
one District The number nl Senators shall be ,hifty
two and they shall be apportioned anong the Senate
rial Districts according to the total population con
tanned in the several Disttic,s-Provued, that n,
Parish shall be entitled to than five Senators.
ART. l6 In all apportionments Of the Senate th
population oil the city OF New Orleans shall be deduc
ted from the population OF the whole State, and tn
remainder Of the population divided by the nuub-
twenty-srven, (27) and the result produced by th
division shall bs the Senatorial ratio emitting Sena
torial District to Senator. Single OF cop,iguou
Parishes shall be formed into Districts, lasin.,
population the nearest possible to the number en-
ttling District to Senator; and II, in the sppor
tonment to be made Parish or District fall short O
exceed the ratio one-ifth, then District ulay b,
formed having not more than two Senators, but no
otherwise, No new apportionmen, shall have ths
effect OF abridgng the term of service oil any S.na
tor already elected at the time Of making the appur
tionment. After enumeration has been made a.
directed in the eighth Article, the Legislature slaI
not pass any law until an opportonmsnt of Repre-
sentatnn IN both Houses of the General Asseinbl,
be made.
AIT. H. At the first session of the General As
sembly after this Constitution takes effect, the Sens
tors shall be equally divided by lot into two classes
The seats Of the Senators Of the first class shall BIZ
vacated at the expiration of the second year OF tht
that hall shall be- chosen every two years and
rotation thereby kept up perpetually. In case any
District shall have elected two more Senators
said Senators shall their seats respectively
the end oil two and four years. and lots shall be
between them.
ART. IL. The first election for Senators shall bp
general throuQbou the State and AT th, same ii,.,