October 22
October 22, 2007
Richard Weaver
October 24, 2007Editor’s Note: Dan Juneau’s column was submitted for publication late Friday. As predicted, Congressman Bobby Jindal was elected governor with over 53 percent of the popular vote. Agriculture Commissioner Bob Odom will face Republican Mike Strain in a run-off and, for the first time in decades Charles Foti will not be a public servant, having lost the attorney general job. Royal Alexander and James Caldwell will face off in November.
Many years ago, when American writer Gertrude Stein was asked what she thought of Oakland, Calif., she responded: “There is no there there.”
That might be an apt description of the primary election that will end 32 hours after this column is written. This will be the ninth statewide election I have been involved with in my professional career, and none of the previous ones have been as devoid of energy and drama as this one.
Why? The reasons are numerous.
The governor’s race is the main attraction in our statewide elections. Gov. Kathleen Blanco’s low poll numbers and high disapproval ratings were creating a great degree of energy about the race earlier in the year. When the governor announced she would not be a candidate for re-election, much of the energy went away.
Congressman Bobby Jindal, who lost a close runoff election to Blanco in 2003, automatically assumed the mantle of front-runner once Blanco removed herself from the race. He has maintained a significant lead throughout the campaign and is considered a good possibility to win outright Saturday evening.
The front-runner often collapses in the primary in Louisiana gubernatorial elections, but that hasn’t happened this year.
Jindal has employed a “prevent defense” and avoided most opportunities for joint appearances with his challengers – and has apparently suffered little for doing so. The absence of strong, direct debate among the candidates has turned a lackluster election into a somnolent one.
Perhaps the most interesting races are ones for other statewide offices. The fur has been flying in the contests for Attorney General and Agriculture Commissioner with runoffs all but assured in those races. Incumbents Bob Odom (Agriculture Commissioner) and Charles Foti (Attorney General) are working overtime to hold on to their positions with the opening of the polls less than a day away.
The lack of energy in the governor’s race is also evident in many of the races for the state Legislature.
This is the first term-limited election in Louisiana’s modern political history. Many voters anticipated huge fields of candidates running for open seats and serious challenges for many of the incumbents. For the most part, that hasn’t been the case.
In fact, five first-time candidates for the House of Representatives who were running for seats made vacant by term limits were elected on the day qualifying ended because no one opposed them. That is amazing.
In addition to those five, 20 incumbents in the House drew no opponents and were elected without having to run a race.
The Senate was a slightly different story. Only four incumbents in that chamber were elected without opposition, and more of those races are hotly contested.
One of the major themes in any election is “change.” There will undoubtedly be significant differences in the direction the governor’s office takes for the next four years, but change in the Legislature might well be less noticeable.
The Senate appears to be headed toward basically the same makeup it had during the last four years with the number of Republicans and African-Americans changing little. The House appears to be moving toward a slightly more conservative configuration but not one in which the first Republican majority since Reconstruction is seated.
Where change may come is when the next Legislature draws the lines for legislative reapportionment.
But in the past, legislators seemed much more concerned about making their districts more compatible for them than about significantly altering the political landscape.
Change is an active word that may be the first casualty after a very passive election.
