FAQ

The Love Life Amendment will be Amendment #1 on the Louisiana ballot on Tuesday November 3, 2020, the same day as the Presidential election.

Early voting is Oct. 16-27 (excluding Sunday, Oct. 18 and Sunday, Oct. 25) from 8 a.m.-7 p.m.

The Love Life Vote Yes Amendment does two main things.

1. Places our long-standing Louisiana pro-life ethic in our Louisiana Constitution.
2. Ensures that state courts, whether now or when the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, cannot establish a “right to abortion” or the tax funding of abortion in Louisiana.

When voters go into the voting booth on November 3 2020, you will read this on the ballot:

“Do you support an amendment declaring that, to protect human life, a right to abortion and the funding of abortion shall not be found in the Louisiana Constitution?

If the ballot measures succeeds with a majority vote, the following language would be added to the Louisiana Constitution under Article I, Section 20.1:

“To protect human life, nothing in this constitution shall be construed to secure or protect a right to abortion or require the funding of abortion.”

Read the final legislation authorizing the ballot measure.

The immediate impact of this amendment is to make sure that Louisiana’s current pro-life laws passed overwhelmingly by our legislators cannot be undermined by state judges. 

These laws reflect the will of our citizens and include basic protections such as informed consent, parental consent, ultrasound laws, and laws to protect unborn babies at the 4th month of pregnancy and beyond. In recent years, law firms based in New York representing businesses that sell abortion have petitioned state courts to “discover” a right to abortion in the state constitution.  The Love Life Amendment will prevent this from happening.

Unfortunately, the U.S. Supreme Court still forces states to allow abortion.  In Louisiana, this means that babies up to the 5th month of pregnancy can be aborted.  But the Supreme Court could change its decision in the future (and many state laws are challenging Roe v. Wade).  If the U.S. Supreme Court overturns or modifies Roe v. Wade, the Love Life Amendment would protect the right of Louisiana citizens and our legislators to protect babies from abortion.

In the past, the Supreme Courts of 13 various states, including New York, Tennessee, and even Kansas, have “found” a right to abortion and the tax-funding of abortion their state constitutions. Their decisions have resulted in pro-life laws being struck down by judges, reinforcing an abortion-on-demand policy.

We can’t let this happen in Louisiana.  We love babies and their mothers, and our pro-life laws reflect the will of our people.  The Love Life Amendment keeps the decisions about our pro-life laws in the hands of Louisianians and their elected legislators.  It will prevent New York-based law firms representing abortion businesses from getting Louisiana judges to strike down our laws.

No.  The Love Life Amendment does not “ban” abortion in Louisiana.

The question of whether abortion is legal or not, and in what cases, depends on federal and state law, not the Louisiana Constitution.  The Love Life Amendment will simply ensure that Louisiana judges cannot establish a right to abortion or the tax-funding of abortion in the Louisiana Constitution.

The Love Life Amendment simply ensures that a right to abortion or the funding of abortion cannot be found in the Louisiana Constitution.  The passage of the Love Life Amendment will not prohibit abortion.  The question of whether abortion is legal or not, and in what cases, depends on federal and state law, not the Louisiana Constitution.  Because of this, the Love Life Amendment is silent on issues of “exceptions” such as rape and incest. 

Amendment #1 has nothing to do with naturally-occurring miscarriages. State law differentiates between abortion (the intention killing of a living unborn baby) and naturally-occurring miscarriages (often referred to as “spontaneous abortion”). RS 40:1061.9(1)(b) makes it abundantly clear that induced abortion does not include the removal of the deceased unborn child in these cases.  Our hearts go out to those women and families who have suffered the pain of miscarriage.

Since Amendment #1 does not prohibit any abortions, and therefore does not specify what exceptions to abortion should and should not be allowed, the question of situations of the “life of the mother” are not relevant to Amendment #1.  However, it is important to clarify that Louisiana law currently includes exceptions to the termination of a pregnancy when it comes to the situation where the “life of the mother” is in danger.  See RS 40.1061(F)  In those situations, state law permits physicians to take action to end a pregnancy with a reasonable effort to save the life of both the mother and the baby.

We need your help to pass the amendment! Here are a few things you can do:

• Pledge to Vote and Join the Team
• Make a $20 Donation or more for the 2020 Pro-Life Amendment
• Follow Our Social Media and Share With Your Friends
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

We are the Louisiana Pro-Life Amendment Coalition, a team of Louisiana citizens and organizations who want to put our love for life at the heart of our state, in our Constitution. We are led by Louisiana Right to Life. State Rep. Katrina Jackson (D-Monroe) and State Sen. Beth Mizell (R-Franklinton) were the lead legislative authors of the law authorizing the 2020 ballot initiative.

Are you a Louisiana citizen? Will you be 18 by Nov. 3? Are you registered to vote?

Click Here to Register to Vote

Here are some important dates to know:

• The deadline to register to vote in person or by mail is Oct. 5.
• The deadline to register to vote through the GeauxVote Online Registration System is Oct. 13.
• Early voting is Oct. 20-27 (excluding Sunday, Oct. 25) from 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m.
• The deadline to request an absentee by mail ballot is Oct. 30 by 4:30 p.m. You can request an absentee by mail ballot online through our Voter Portal or in writing through your Registrar of Voters Office (other than military and overseas voters).
• The deadline for a registrar of voters to receive a voted mail ballot is Nov. 2 by 4:30 p.m. (other than military and overseas voters).

Amendment #1, if passed, ensures that judges could never force the taxpayer funding of abortion on Louisiana through the Louisiana Constitution.

Currently, Louisiana law prohibits the state taxpayer funding of abortion.  However, a state judicial ruling could declare that law unconstitutional under the Louisiana Constitution if a “right to abortion” was discovered by state judges. Amendment #1 would prevent that from happening.

Amendment #1 makes no impact of any future federal funding of abortion in Louisiana. Currently under federal law, the Hyde Amendment prevents only the federal funding of abortion.  However, there are many members of Congress, along with presidential candidate Vice President Joe Biden, who support overturning the Hyde Amendment and allowing the federal funding of abortion.  Amendment #1 would not prevent the federal funding of abortion in Louisiana because it only has to do with state dollars.