The issue of appropriate minority representation in the legislative and judicial branches of Louisiana government is one that has been litigated for decades, and that litigation has surfaced again, in light of the US Supreme Court’s repealing one of the provisions of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The repealed provision (also known as “Section 4”) […]
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RSS feed for this sectionDecision 2014: “Pregame” (Part 1: the 2013 elections)
Election season will soon be upon us. Though it is technically true that this is an “off year”, there are several elections occurring later this year that will set the stage for the 2014 midterm elections. In this installment of a two part article, we will discuss those 2013 elections that will set the tone […]
2012 Louisiana Census Data
Recently, the US Census released interim population estimates showing population changes for all 50 states between April 2, 2010 (the date of the last Census) and July 1, 2012. While this interim count is an estimate, it is useful for tracking population changes throughout the decade to be able to predict future population/demographic changes.
(Proposed) Southeast Baton Rouge school district: can it get 70 votes ?
Background In our previous posting, we had noted that there were several hurdles that had to be cleared before voters could decide whether the southeastern portion of East Baton Rouge Parish would be able to form its own school district. We also noted that it was the House (not the Senate) where the bill has […]
(Proposed) Southeast Baton Rouge school district: what will it take to pass?
Background in Louisiana, school districts are usually synonymous with the parish lines, with five exceptions: Monroe, Bogalusa, Baker, Zachary, and Central – these are separate school districts within their respective parishes.
Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”) vote in the Louisiana House of Representatives
When the Supreme Court essentially left the Affordable Care Act (i.e., “Obamacare”) intact last year in a 5-4 decision, it also allowed the states to choose whether they wanted to participate in the expansion of the Medicaid program. That created a situation where each state is is independently deciding whether to participate in this part of the […]
Decision 2014 – DefendLA poll on Obama approval, Landrieu re-elect, and gun legislation
One of the more closely watched US Senate races in 2014 will undoubtedly be in Louisiana, where three term Democratic incumbent Mary Landrieu will face Republican Congressman Bill Cassidy – she has never been elected or re-elected with more than 52% of the vote.
Tolls on the Crescent City Connection – a tale of “East” versus “West”
The presence of tolls on the Crescent City Connection Bridge in New Orleans, which had been in place since 1989, has been an emotional issue for Westbankers for some time, since the tolls were only collected for Westbankers commuting to work in New Orleans or other locations on the Eastbank (no tolls were collected for […]
Voter targeting – an analytical approach
A common mistake those running for office make is a lack of understanding of voter behavior, which results in their spending unnecessary effort reaching out to potential voters. This article will address both the nature of the problem and what can be done about it.
Louisiana voter registration trends, 2001-2013 (Part II – Voter registration by age)
In the first part of our analysis, we examined changes in Louisiana voter registration over the past decade. There is another layer to this analysis to get a complete picture, however – examining voter registration data by a voter’s age, since the political views of each generation are invariably shaped by the political context of […]