*UPDATE: House Governmental Affairs approves the plan on a 8-6 vote*
The Legislature is considering Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin’s election plan for the fall elections that Governor Edwards calls woefully inadequate. The proposal scales back the vote by mail options compared to what the state had for the summer elections. Ardoin explained why this election plan is different.
“I developed a plan that I knew could pass the Legislature because that is what has to be done to have a plan. I have communicated that with the Governor if he disagrees with me then so be it,” says Ardoin.
Under Ardoin’s plan, the only COVID-related reason for requesting an absentee ballot is that if you test positive for the virus during early voting or before Election Day.
Edwards says the proposal does not allow people who have to quarantine to receive a mail-in a ballot or make any consideration for individuals who are susceptible to the virus.
Bogalusa Representative Malinda White believes Ardoin should have worked with Governor Edwards on an election plan that protects public health.
“When we talk about politics and you bring that up and you talk about counting votes then you need to know that the Governor is going to veto this in the end and it is going to go to court,” says White.
White noted that the Secretary of State did not report any instances of fraud stemming from the mail-in ballot policies of the summer elections. Ardoin says only two percent of absentee ballots cast in the July election were from voters who used COVID-19 as a reason.
Ardoin says he’s been pressured by both sides to change the plan implemented in the summer, and he feels this is a compromise.
“Whether it was an advocacy group on the left or a legislator on that side, they moved further out. On the other side, they moved further to the right, so here I am in the middle going ok, what do I do? What do I do?” asked Ardoin.
White questions whether Ardoin wants a plan that has consensus support.
“It seems that we would have worked with LDH (Louisiana Department of Health) one because they are the health experts here and the Governor’s office. We didn’t do that part apparently because this plan is nothing like the ones that we just finished,” says White.
A Senate committee will discuss the proposal Thursday. If approved by both committees both Chambers will vote by mail. If approved by both Chambers the proposal will head to the Governor. If he rejects it, the issue will likely go to court where a judge would have to decide whether the election plan will default to what was done in the summer, or to normal election procedures.
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