BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) — Louisiana has climbed to second place in the nation for election integrity, according to the Heritage Foundation’s latest rankings. The state moved up from ninth place, Secretary of State Nancy Landry announced Monday. Scores are calculated from 12 categor ies, including ID use, absentee ballot management and vote counting practices. "This latest ranking proves once again that Louisiana’s elections are safe and secure," Landry said. "I am proud of the hard work that our elections team does day in and day out to ensure the integrity of our elections. While this news is cause for celebration, there is still much work to be done. I won’t be satisfied until Louisiana is number one in the nation, and I am confident that will happen when we transition to a new, fully-auditable voting system." A search has started for a new voting system. Landry previously told Louisiana First News that one of the problems with the existing decades-old system is finding machine parts for repairs. She said pilot testing could be conducted in smaller parishes starting in 2026. Democrats outpace Republicans in early voting ahead of March 29 election Latest News Republicans push to ban junk food purchases with SNAP benefits Education Department restores IDR student loan applications Babysitter checking for monsters finds man hiding under child's bed in Kansas: Sheriff Missing US soldiers in Lithuania killed: NATO chief Kermit the Frog to give commencement address at University of Maryland ...read more read less