Canon 7 A Judge Or Judicial Candidate Shall Refrain From Inappropriate Political and Campaign Activity

A Judge Or Judicial Candidate Shall Refrain From Inappropriate Political and Campaign Activity

A. A Judge or Judicial Candidate Shall Not, Except to the Extent Permitted By These Canons:

(1) act as a leader or hold any office in a political organization;

(2) publicly endorse or publicly oppose another candidate for public office;

(3) make speeches on behalf of a political organization or a candidate for public office;

(4) solicit funds for, pay an assessment to, or make a contribution to a political organization, candidate for public office, or elected official;

(5) purchase tickets for campaign functions;

(6) personally solicit or personally accept contributions, as defined by the Louisiana Campaign Finance Disclosure Act, La. R.S. 18:1481 et seq., as may be amended;

(7) use or permit the use of contributions, as defined by the Louisiana Campaign Finance Disclosure Act, for the sole or exclusive benefit of the judge, the candidate, or others, which shall be subject to the restrictions concerning personal use as defined by the Louisiana Campaign Finance Disclosure Act;

(8) use court staff, facilities, or other court resources in a campaign for judicial office, except to the extent that such use is de minimis in nature;

(9) knowingly make, or cause to be made, a false statement concerning the identity, qualifications, present position, or other fact concerning the candidate or an opponent;

(10) make any statement that would reasonably be expected to affect the outcome or impair the fairness of a matter pending in any Louisiana state court; or

(11) in connection with cases, controversies, or issues that are likely to come before the court, make pledges, promises, or commitments that are inconsistent with the impartial performance of the adjudicative duties of judicial office.

B. A Judge or Judicial Candidate Shall:

(1) maintain the dignity appropriate to judicial office and act in a manner consistent with the impartiality, integrity and independence of the judiciary;

(2) review and approve the content of all political advertisements produced by the judge or judicial candidate, his or her campaign committee, or pursuant to a joint fundraising agreement with his or her campaign committee, as authorized by Canon 7D, before their dissemination;

(3) take reasonable measures to ensure that other persons do not undertake, on behalf of the judge or judicial candidate, any activities prohibited under this Canon; and

(4) except to the extent permitted by Canon 7D, not authorize or knowingly permit any person, committee, or organization to do for the candidate what the judge or judicial candidate is prohibited from doing under this Canon.

C. A Judge or a Judicial Candidate May:

(1) At any time:

(a) attend political gatherings;

(b) identify himself or herself as a member of a political party; and

(c) purchase tickets for dinners or other events sponsored by a political organization; provided, however that such events are not in support of a particular candidate for public office.

(2) In preparation for or during his or her candidacy:

(a) personally solicit publicly stated support;

(b) establish a campaign committee pursuant to the provisions of Canon 7D.

(3) During his or her candidacy:

(a) speak to gatherings on his or her own behalf;

(b) appear in newspaper, television or other media advertisements supporting his or her candidacy;

(c) distribute pamphlets or other promotional campaign literature supporting his or her candidacy;

(d) respond to personal attacks or attacks on the judge or judicial candidate's record as long as the response does not violate Canon 7A(9) and 7B(1); and

(e) contribute to a political organization and/or be included on a political ticket or endorsement.

D. Campaign Committees

(1) Campaign committees may conduct campaigns for the judge or judicial candidate through media advertisements, brochures, mailings, candidate forums and other means not prohibited by law or the provisions of this Code. Such committees may solicit and accept campaign contributions, manage the expenditure of funds for the judge’s or judicial candidate's campaign and obtain public statements of support for his or her candidacy. However, no undue pressure or coercion may be applied in such solicitation.

(2) A campaign committee may solicit and accept contributions for the judge’s or judicial candidate’s campaign no earlier than two years before the primary election. Contributions may be solicited after the last election in which the judge or judicial candidate participated only for the purpose of extinguishing any campaign debt and interest thereon resulting from a judicial election. After all campaign debt is extinguished, post-election campaign contributions may not be solicited or accepted.

A judge’s or judicial candidate’s campaign committee shall not solicit or accept campaign contributions for an election if the judge or judicial candidate is constitutionally ineligible to serve in that office at the commencement of the related term of office. [Amended February 4, 2026]

(3) (a) A judge’s or judicial candidate’s campaign committee may enter into a joint fundraising agreement, as authorized by the Louisiana Campaign Finance Disclosure Act, including La. R.S. 18:1491.9, 1505.2, and 1505.2.1, with a leadership committee designated by the judge formed to support the judge in the conduct of his public duties. All fundraising, expenditures, and activities conducted pursuant to a joint fundraising agreement shall be conducted in accordance with applicable law and subject to the applicable restrictions for a campaign committee under this Code.

(b) A judge may establish a leadership committee pursuant to the Louisiana Campaign Finance Disclosure Act. The fundraising authority related to a leadership committee shall only commence two years prior to the primary related to a judge’s re-election to judicial office and shall terminate upon the election in the same manner and subject to the same exceptions concerning loans as provided in Paragraph 2 of this Subsection. To orderly transition toward imposing these additional limitations on activities otherwise expressly authorized by law, the time period limitation of fundraising authority for leadership committees restricting it to the two year period prior to a primary election shall only apply on or after January 1, 2027. Any amount raised by a leadership committee shall be subject to a restriction on retention applicable one year after commencing a new term of office, or one year after January 1, 2027, whichever is later, in the same amount as applicable to the relevant judicial office under Subsection E. All fundraising for a leadership committee shall be conducted in the same manner as conducted by a campaign committee under this Code, and all fundraising, expenditures, and activities of a leadership committee shall be conducted in accordance with this Code.

E. Retention of Campaign Contributions. A judge or judicial candidate may retain campaign funds in the following amounts proportionate to the classification of the office to which the judge or judicial candidate seeks election:

Class of Judicial Office

Amount of Campaign Funds That May Be Retained

Major Office

$600,000

District Office

$400,000

Other Office

$200,000

A judge or judicial candidate must, unlike other state elected officials, divest himself or herself of any unused campaign funds in excess of the amount listed above by pro rata refund to the campaign contributors or by donation to a charitable organization not later than one year after the beginning of the term of judicial office following an election in which a judge or judicial candidate participates as a contestant.

The definitions of “Major Office” and “District Office” are the same as those contained in La. R.S. 18:1483.

“Other Office” shall mean any judicial office that is not a Major Office or a District Office.

For any Major Office subject to multiple party primary elections held separate from the general election under La. R.S. 18:2(7), or other applicable law, the amount allowed to be retained under this Subsection shall be applied as a limit for the party primary and a separate limit for the general election for amounts properly segregated pursuant to La. R.S. 18:1505.2.1(A)(1) or other applicable law. The limitation provided for under this rule shall only apply to retained donor funds. Funds loaned by a candidate to his or her committee that are not subject to Louisiana campaign finance limitations under La. R.S. 18:1505.2(H)(5), or other applicable law, shall not be included in the application of the retention limits under this rule.

F. Other Partisan Political Activity. A judge shall not engage in any partisan political activity except:

1. On behalf of measures to improve the law, the legal system or the administration of justice; or

2. Campaign and other political activity not prohibited by this Code.

G. Applicability. Canon 7 generally applies to all incumbent judges and judicial candidates. A successful candidate, whether or not an incumbent, is subject to judicial discipline for his or her campaign conduct; an unsuccessful candidate who is a lawyer is subject to lawyer discipline for his or her campaign conduct. A lawyer who is a candidate for judicial office is subject to Rule 8.2(a) and (b) of the Louisiana Rules of Professional Conduct.

H. Definition of Candidate. A candidate is a person seeking election or reelection to a judicial office. A person becomes a candidate for judicial office as soon as his or her committee publicly advertises or maintains a website or social media presence in support of his or her candidacy, he or she makes a public announcement of candidacy, declares or files as a candidate with the election or appointment authority, or authorizes solicitation or acceptance of contributions or support, whichever occurs first. The term “candidate” has the same meaning when applied to a judge seeking election to judicial or non-judicial office.

I. Candidacy for Non-Judicial Office. A judge shall resign his or her office when the judge becomes a candidate either in a party primary or in a general election for a non-judicial office, except that a judge may continue to hold judicial office while being a candidate for election to or serving as a delegate in a state constitutional convention, if the judge is otherwise permitted by law to do so.