Louisiana State Senate

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Louisiana State Senate" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (August 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Louisiana State Senate
Louisiana State Legislature
Type
Type	Upper house
Term limits	3 terms (12 years)
History
New session started	January 8, 2024
Leadership
President	Cameron Henry (R) since January 8, 2024
President pro tempore	Regina Barrow (D) since January 8, 2024
Majority Leader	Jeremy Stine (R) since January 8, 2024
Minority Leader	Gerald Boudreaux (D) since May 10, 2021
Structure
Seats	39
Political groups	Majority    Republican (28) Minority   Democratic (11)
Length of term	4 years
Authority	Article III, Section 3, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Website
Louisiana State Senate
Rules
Senate Rules

Politics of Louisiana
Constitution and law United States Constitution Louisiana Constitution Louisiana law
Executive Governor Jeff Landry (R) State Cabinet Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser (R) Secretary of State Nancy Landry (R) Attorney General Liz Murrill (R) State Treasurer John Fleming (R) Commissioner of Agriculture and Forestry Mike Strain (R) Commissioner of Insurance Timothy Temple (R) Public Service Commission Board of Elementary and Secondary Education
Legislature State Senate President Cameron Henry (R) President pro tempore Regina Barrow (R) Majority Leader Jeremy Stine (R) Minority Leader Gerald Boudreaux (D) House of Representatives Speaker Phillip DeVillier (R) Speaker pro tempore Michael T. Johnson (R) Majority Leader Mark Wright (Louisiana politician) (R) Minority Leader Matthew Willard (D)
Judiciary Supreme Court Chief Justice John L. Weimer (I) Justice William J. Crain (R) Justice Scott Crichton (R) Justice James T. Genovese (R) Justice Jay McCallum (R) Justice Jefferson D. Hughes III (R) Justice Piper D. Griffin (D) Louisiana Circuit Courts of Appeal Louisiana District Courts Parish and City Courts Mayor's Courts Justice of the Peace Courts
Elections Nonpartisan primary Political parties Qualified Louisiana parties Democratic Party Republican Party Green Party Reform Party Libertarian Party National minor parties Political party strength
Administrative divisions Parishes (64) Municipalities (303) School districts
Federal representation U.S. Senate (list) Bill Cassidy (R) John Kennedy (R) U.S. House of Representatives (list) 1: Steve Scalise (R) 2: Troy Carter (D) 3: Clay Higgins (R) 4: Mike Johnson (R) 5: Julia Letlow (R) 6: Garret Graves (R)
Politics of the United States Politics portal United States portal
v t e

The Louisiana State Senate (French: Sénat de L'État de Louisiane; Spanish: Senado del Estado de Luisiana) is the upper house of Louisiana’s legislature. Senators serve four-year terms and participate in various committees.

The Louisiana State Senate has 39 members elected from single-member districts. Candidates must be registered voters, at least 18 years old, residents of their district for one year, and Louisiana residents for two years. Senate elections use a nonpartisan primary system with runoffs if needed. Elections to the Senate occur every four years and senators are limited to three four-year terms (12 years). If a seat is vacated early during a term, it will be filled in a special election. The Senate meets yearly alongside the House of Representatives. General sessions last 60 days in even years, and appropriations sessions last 45 days in odd years.

The Senate is the Upper Legislative Chamber of the Louisiana State Legislature and, along with the Louisiana House of Representatives, is the legislative power of the state of Louisiana. In addition, it tries officials impeached by the House of Representatives and confirms or rejects officials nominated by the governor of Louisiana.

The Louisiana State Senate currently has over fifteen different committees in which the senators sit. These committees address a wide range of issues such as environmental quality, education, labor relations and more . A full list of the committees can be found at the senate committees page.^[1] Likewise, a full list of committee assignments (by member) can be found at the committee assignments page.^[2]

The Senate president, elected by its members, serves as its highest-ranking official. While not required, the governor typically nominates the president, who is then elected by the Senate. The president is usually chosen from the majority party, even if it is not the governor's party, although this is not always the case. One example of this is when Republican Governor Mike Foster chose Republican State Senator John J. Hainkel Jr. to serve as senate president even though the Democrats had a large majority. One factor that allows for this is that the Governor usually has support on both sides of the aisle when he first enters office so his appointees, including the senate president, are usually confirmed easily.

The president is fifth in the line of succession to the governorship after the lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general, and state treasurer.

The Louisiana Constitution of 1812 did not provide for a lieutenant governor to succeed to the governorship in case of the governor's death, resignation or removal from office, neither would there be a lieutenant governor to preside over the state senate, instead it provided that the President would serve as the state senate's presiding officer and become acting governor until the seating of an elected governor. The first senate president to succeed to the governorship was

In the Louisiana Constitution of 1846, the lieutenant governor of Louisiana assumed the functions of the senate presidency. This arrangement lasted until 1976. The first lieutenant governor to preside over the Senate was Trasimond Landry who served from 1846 until 1850. During the Civil War there were two lieutenant governors, one union, and one confederate, as there were two separate state governments. During the Reconstruction the post was held by Republicans, thereafter the chair was held by Democrats for over a hundred years.

From the end of the Reconstruction in 1877 until the appointment of

was elected in 2015.

In 2020, Republican

Patrick Page Cortez

was elected senate president when Alario retired due to term limits.

Powers

This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

The Senate president assigns members to committees, often based on recommendations from the governor. The president plays a key role in advancing or blocking legislation during sessions. If a senator supports the governor's agenda the president may promote them to more powerful committees, or even appoint them chairman or vice chairmanships. The president usually maintains a strong hold on the senate and legislation through his appointment of committee memberships and committee chairmen. The president has the power to rule on points of order recognize senators so they may speak and control the flow of legislation through the senate. The senate president is almost always an ally of the Governor, this allows the administration to pass their legislative agenda through easier and it allows them to kill opposition legislation easier too. The senate president is usually a powerful and influential senator before he is appointed senate president. If a senate seat falls vacant before the expiration f its term the senate president calls for an election, he sets the date, times, and places of voting. Upon the petition of a majority of the members of the legislature the President along with the Speakers calls a special session. The senate president is fifth in the gubernatorial line of succession. If the president is ever absent the senate president pro tempore, who is also appointed by the governor, presides. Should the senate chair ever fall permanently vacant the senate president pro tempore presides until the election of a new president.

Past composition of the senate

• President of the Louisiana State Senate
• Louisiana Legislature
• Louisiana House of Representatives

• The Louisiana State Senate official government website
• State Senate of Louisiana at
  Project Vote Smart
• Louisiana State Senate at Ballotpedia