Committee rejects bill to add Sunday early voting and automatic makeup day after weather suspensions

A proposal to expand early voting by adding the first Sunday of the early-voting period and to permit a makeup day following a weather-related suspension failed in a House committee on a recorded roll-call, 6 yeas to 8 nays.

Representative Murray told the panel the bill responds to voters with work schedules and to parishes affected by severe weather; he described the measure as a modest access expansion. "This bill would expand voter access by adding the first Sunday in the early voting statewide," he said, noting that some constituents work multi-week shifts away from home and that a short Sunday window would ease access.

Officials from the Secretary of States office and local registrars pushed back on operational grounds. Katherine Newsome, Assistant Secretary of State, explained that the current statutory calendar and the operational workload between the close of early voting and election day require a seven-day window to build and proof precinct registers and prepare polling machines. "When early voting ends on Saturday, we stay up that entire night building the precinct registers," one elections official said. She added that tacking on a day at the back end of early voting is not operationally feasible because of statutory deadlines and reconciliation tasks that occur in the week before election day.

Committee members explored a narrower compromise — limited Sunday hours, such as noon–6 p.m. — and Representative Marcel offered an amendment to that effect; Representative Murray accepted the idea for further work. Registrars warned that early-voting staffing is already a challenge, and that commissionerspay is set by statute as a day rate, complicating partial-day arrangements. The registrar for one large parish said the proposed change would affect only a small number of polling locations under a previously passed precinct-consolidation rule.

The committee considered testimony from civic groups, including John West of the Urban League, who urged supporting the bill as a means to protect votes and expand access, especially in the face of natural disasters. After discussion the committee recorded six votes in favor and eight against and the measure remained in committee.

The recorded vote leaves open the possibility of a modified proposal before the full chamber, but as presented the committee majority concluded the bills operational costs and statutory conflicts outweighed the proposed access benefits.