BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Grants offered by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s nonprofit organization to run elections during the coronavirus pandemic have drawn the ire of Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry. They’re also prompting efforts to rewrite Louisiana law.
The Advocate reports the Republican attorney general warned local election officials not to pursue the money. He’s working with state House GOP leader Blake Miguez to outlaw the ability for Louisiana officials to use such grants for elections.
The legislation awaits debate before the full House, after receiving support from a House committee on a 7-5 vote.
Republicans say they’re concerned about election meddling, while Democrats say the state is passing up needed money in a pandemic.