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HB 842LOUISIANASession 2026State BillSigned into law
Enacted

Louisiana House Bill 842 revises the election code and cancels 2026 congressional primary elections

Original title: ELECTION CODE: Makes revisions to the Louisiana Election Code

Last action · May 14, 2026: Effective date: See Act.Sponsor: Beau Beaullieu

Bill progressHistory & official text ↓
Introduced
Committee
Floor Vote
Passed
Law

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What This Bill Does

Louisiana HB 842 revises the state election code, cancels the May 16 and June 27, 2026, party primary elections for U.S. Representative, and reschedules congressional elections to the November 3, 2026 open primary and December 12, 2026 general election. The measure also updates voter registration rules, candidate qualifying procedures, absentee and early voting regulations, and registrar duties, taking effect across various dates in 2026 and 2027.

Why it matters

Changes the election calendar for federal congressional seats in Louisiana, sets new candidate qualifying deadlines for August 2026, requires filing fees to be refunded to affected candidates, and adjusts procedures for voter rolls, mail-in ballots, and challenges for all registered voters.

Background
  • House Bill 842 was passed during the 2026 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature and signed into law by the governor as Act 7. context
  • State election codes govern voter registration lists, candidate qualifying periods, absentee and early voting mechanics, and the administration of elections by local and state officials. context

Who It Affects

Groups the bill's text affects, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.

Directly affected

Candidates for United States Congress

Their primary election dates are cancelled and rescheduled, qualifying fees are refunded, and new petition deadlines and qualifying dates are established.

Directly affected

Registered voters in Louisiana

Voter registration rules, inactive voter procedures, disability signature alternatives, and election dates are modified.

Directly affected

Registrars of voters

They must process new alternative signature attestations, handle revised cancellation and canvass schedules, and manage nominating petitions under updated rules.

Directly affected

Secretary of State

Must refund qualifying fees, cancel petitions, promulgate administrative rules for ballot curing and distinguishing marks, and oversee updated election administration duties.

Key Facts

You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens to the congressional primary elections scheduled for May and June 2026?
The May 16, 2026, and June 27, 2026, party primary elections for representative in the United States Congress are cancelled, and any votes cast in them are void and will not be counted.
When will 2026 congressional candidates now be elected?
Candidates for representative in the United States Congress will be elected at the open primary election held on November 3, 2026, and the open general election held on December 12, 2026.
What happens to the qualifying fees paid by candidates for the cancelled congressional primaries?
The secretary of state is required to remit to each candidate the state portion of the qualifying fee and any additional qualifying fee paid for the May 16 and June 27, 2026 primary elections.
How does the bill change party affiliation designations for unaffiliated voters?
Effective September 1, 2026, any person who is registered as or applies for registration as 'unaffiliated' will have their party affiliation changed to 'no party'.

What else do you want to know?

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Where This Stands

Current status: Signed into law.

Procedural history

44 actions
  1. May 14, 2026SenateEnrolled
    Signed by the President of the Senate.
  2. May 14, 2026House
    Sent to the Governor for executive approval.
  3. May 14, 2026HouseEnrolled
    Signed by the Governor. Becomes Act No. 7.
  4. May 14, 2026House
    Effective date: See Act.
  5. May 13, 2026House
    Conference Committee report received. Lies over under the rules.
  6. May 13, 2026House
    Rules suspended.
Show 38 earlier actions
  1. May 13, 2026HouseFloor
    Conference Committee Report read, roll called, yeas 66, nays 29. The Conference Committee Report was adopted.
  2. May 13, 2026Senate
    Conference committee report received.
  3. May 13, 2026SenateFloor
    Notice House adopted the Conference Committee Report.
  4. May 13, 2026Senate
    Rules suspended.
  5. May 13, 2026SenateFloor
    Conference Committee Report read; adopted by a vote of 29 yeas and 7 nays.
  6. May 13, 2026House
    Notice of Senate adoption of Conference Committee Report.
  7. May 13, 2026HouseEnrolled
    Enrolled and signed by the Speaker of the House.
  8. May 12, 2026Senate
    Senate conference committee members appointed: Miller, Kleinpeter, and Womack.
  9. May 12, 2026House
    Notice of Senate conferees appointed.
  10. May 11, 2026HouseIntroduced
    Read by title, roll called, yeas 97, nays 0, Senate amendments rejected, conference committee appointment pending.
  11. May 11, 2026House
    House conferees appointed: Beaullieu, Thomas, and Wilder.
  12. May 11, 2026Senate
    Notice House rejected the Senate amendments.
  13. May 11, 2026Senate
    Notice House Conference Committee members appointed.
  14. May 7, 2026House
    Scheduled for concurrence on 05/11/2026.
  15. May 6, 2026Senate
    Rules suspended.
  16. May 6, 2026SenateFloor
    The amended bill was read by title, passed by a vote of 28 yeas and 9 nays, and ordered returned to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.
  17. May 6, 2026House
    Received from the Senate with amendments.
  18. Apr 28, 2026SenateFloor
    Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments. Read by title and passed to third reading and final passage.
  19. Apr 27, 2026SenateFloor
    Committee amendments read and adopted. Read by title and referred to the Legislative Bureau.
  20. Apr 22, 2026Senate
    Reported with amendments.
  21. Apr 13, 2026SenateCommittee
    Read second time by title and referred to the Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs.
  22. Apr 8, 2026Senate
    Received in the Senate. Read first time by title and placed on the Calendar for a second reading.
  23. Apr 7, 2026House
    Called from the calendar.
  24. Apr 7, 2026HouseFloor
    Read third time by title, amended, roll called on final passage, yeas 74, nays 25. Finally passed, title adopted, ordered to the Senate.
  25. Mar 30, 2026House
    Called from the calendar.
  26. Mar 30, 2026HouseIntroduced
    Read by title, returned to the calendar.
  27. Mar 30, 2026House
    Notice given.
  28. Mar 30, 2026House
    Scheduled for floor debate on 04/07/2026.
  29. Mar 25, 2026HouseIntroduced
    Read by title, returned to the calendar.
  30. Mar 25, 2026House
    Notice given.
  31. Mar 25, 2026House
    Scheduled for floor debate on 03/30/2026.
  32. Mar 23, 2026HouseFloor
    Read by title, amended, ordered engrossed, passed to 3rd reading.
  33. Mar 23, 2026House
    Scheduled for floor debate on 03/25/2026.
  34. Mar 18, 2026House
    Reported with amendments (8-5).
  35. Mar 9, 2026HouseIntroduced
    Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on House and Governmental Affairs.
  36. Feb 27, 2026House
    Prefiled.
  37. Feb 27, 2026HouseCommittee
    Under the rules, provisionally referred to the Committee on House and Governmental Affairs.
  38. Feb 27, 2026House
    First appeared in the Interim Calendar on 2/27/2026.

Version history

Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.

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Lobbying Activity

No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.

Full breakdown

Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.

Sponsors

Beau BeaullieuHouse · District 48RepublicanPrimary sponsor

Discoveries

1 pattern noticed across the record

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift100% confidence

Cancellation of Spring 2026 Congressional Primaries

The legislature enacted a major structural change by nullifying previously scheduled spring congressional primaries and consolidating elections into the fall open primary and general election schedule.

United States CongressDepartment of State

Connected Entities

Beau Beaullieu, United States Congress, Louisiana Registrars of Voters Association and 3 more
PersonBeau Beaullieu“Representative who introduced House Bill 842”Map →
OrganizationUnited States Congress“Federal legislative body whose 2026 primary election schedule in Louisiana is mo”Map →
OrganizationLouisiana Registrars of Voters Association“Association whose members may be designated for hearing substitutions or recall ”Map →
OrganizationDepartment of Revenue“Department whose records are confirmed via affidavit in candidacy objections”Map →
locationLouisiana“State where the election code revisions apply”Map →
OrganizationDepartment of State“State department tasked with election administration duties and rules”Map →

Sources

Open source document

www.legis.la.gov

Analysis Score

0–100
  • Significance90
    How much this matters to a regular citizen
  • Controversy65
    Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
  • Entertainment10
    Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
  • Buzz75
    Current news / social attention level

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