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Can Mary Landrieu be defeated in 2014 ?

Historically, incumbent Democratic Senators in Louisiana have rarely worried about their re-election. In fact, in the past 30 years, an incumbent Democrat has only fallen below the 60% mark twice: (1) In 1980, the late Russell Long  was re-elected  by a 58-39% margin against Woody Jenkins (who was a Democrat back then), and (2) in […]

The Effect of Term Limits on the 2011 Legislative Elections

Historically, the Democrats had strong majorities in both houses of the Louisiana Legislature. That began to change starting in 1995. At that time, the GOP tidal wave of 1994, which was part of a larger anti-Clinton tidal wave across the South, finally reached Louisiana. That tidal wave was further augmented by a FBI gambling probe […]

New Orleans Mayors race – a tale of two elections

What a difference an election cycle makes. After the 2006 New Orleans Mayor’s race, it was thought that a white candidate (even a Landrieu, whose patriarch was the last white mayor) had no future in a citywide election. Last night’s election provided some surprises, but there are also some things that need to be noted.