INCUMBENT: Patrick Jefferson (Democrat)

DESCRIPTION: House District 11 is located in north Louisiana. It contains all of Claiborne Parish, the northernmost portion of Bienville Parish, and portions of Lincoln Parish in and around Grambling. This is a district that in 1991 was drawn to be a majority black district.

DISTRICT MAP:

District Map

RED/BLUE RATING (using 2008, 2012, and 2014 elections): 63% Democratic

JMCEL’s SUMMARY: While politically, District 11 is a Democratic district, it is a mixture of rural precincts that are marginal politically, while the district’s portion of Lincoln Parish is overwhelmingly Democratic, as it is centered in and around the historically black university (and town) of Grambling. When the district was reconfigured in 1991 to be a black majority black district, the district’s politics changed substantially, as a white Democratic incumbent was defeated in the Edwards/Duke landslide by a black Democrat, who served until her death in 2000. In that open seat race, Rick Gallot was elected, and served until term limits forced him to retire in 2011 (he was successfully elected to a reconfigured state senate seat in the area). In the open seat race to replace him, Democrat Patrick Jefferson was comfortably elected with 62% of the vote in the primary. He is allowed to serve two more terms, but shouldn’t have problems with re-election.