Oklahoma, Texas and Louisiana turned down the request from the Russian consulate in Houston. Louisiana Secretary of State Tom Schedler wrote that recent flooding had left his office extremely short-staffed trying to deal with the damage and prepare adequately for the vote on November 8. "Had this flood event not occurred, we certainly would have been open to such a visit," he told Consul General Alexander Zakharov.
Both Oklahoma and Texas denied the Russian proposal citing state laws that prohibit it.
