Hutchinson will serve rest of MC Council term; Foulcard will return as Franklin mayor

Thomas Hutchinson Jr., who has filled the Morgan City Council District 5 seat for 10 months on an interim basis, will soon be an interim pick no longer.

Hutchison qualified without opposition to run for the seat in the May 16 election.

The showdown between incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy and challenger Julia Letlow, a U.S. representative, took shape.

Qualifying was Wednesday-Friday.

In St. Mary:

--Franklin Mayor Eugene Foulcard qualified for re-election without opposition.

One Franklin City Council race emerged from qualifying. Pearl Barnes Rack and Ella B. Hamilton qualified for the District C seat.

The other districts drew one candidate each: Lester “Motor” Levine for the at-large seat, Jaime B. Robison in District A, Chuck Autin in District B, and Joseph “Joe” Garrison in District D.

--Glen Elliot of Morgan City qualified alone for justice of the peace in Ward 8.

--U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins, R-Lafayette, qualified with opposition in the 3rd Congressional District Republican primary.

Three candidates qualified to run in the Democratic primary: John Day of Lake Charles, Tia LeBrun of Sulphur and Caleb “With A C” Walker of Lafayette.

The U.S. House and Senate primaries will be run as closed party primaries this year.

--Cassidy and Letlow qualified for the statewide Republican primary, along with state Treasurer John Fleming of Minden and Mark Spencer of Belle Chasse.

On the Democratic side, the qualifiers are Nicholas "Nick" Albares and Gary Crockett of New Orleans and “Jamie” Davis of Ferriday.