Jeremy Alford: Looking ahead to the year's last election

The final ballot of 2022, slated for Saturday, will probably produce a few strong political storylines, but not a whole lot of dramatics. Most of the fall’s high-profile races are already settled and the contests of note remaining are strictly local affairs.

Maybe that’s why election officials anticipate a statewide turnout in the neighborhood of 12% to 15%.

Still, for anyone with at least a passing interest in Louisiana politics, this final election day of 2022 should be able to capture and hold your attention.

Here are some suggestions of what to keep tabs on this Saturday.

Amendment mania

The only statewide action on the ballot comes courtesy of three constitutional amendments. Two politicos in particular have skin in the game, beginning with Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin, who’s publicly backing the first proposed amendment on voting and citizenship. As the author of the second and third amendments addressing civil service and state police oversight, state Sen. Cleo Fields of Baton Rouge is the other driving personality. (These proposed amendments will be the only items on the ballot in 11 parishes, including Allen, Beauregard, Caldwell, Cameron, East Carroll, Grant, Jackson, Madison, Red River, Tensas and Vermilion.)

The Big One

Turnout in the Shreveport mayor’s race will easily surpass the statewide average and one wonders what locals will have to talk about when it’s concluded. Outside spending has moved into the city and has been aimed equally at Democratic state Sen. Greg Tarver and Republican Tom Arceneaux. Local election patterns and regional fundamentals favor a Democrat in this contest, but there has been so much cross-party support for both candidates that the race looks incredibly close to those on the ground.

A lifetime in Louisiana politics has worked for and against Tarver, energizing longtime enemies (like current and former mayors) and staunch supporters (like Gov. John Bel Edwards). With margins likely tightening, the closing days will undoubtedly be nasty for both Arceneaux ($73,000 in the bank as of last week) and Tarver ($410,000 cash on hand).

The other Big One

Two days before Thanksgiving, Public Service Commissioner Lambert Boissiere loaned his campaign $20,000. A week later, the incumbent did the same thing, taking another $20,000 out of his own pockets. That alone should tell you how the state’s lone PSC race is going. Boissiere is taking the challenge from policy hawk Davante Lewis seriously. Rightfully so — Lewis is out-raising and outspending the incumbent. “High electric bills — largely a result of high prices for natural gas, a key fuel for utilities in Louisiana — have raised the profile of the PSC race, usually a sleepy affair that garners little attention from voters and the media,” reported The Advocate’s Sam Karlin, adding, “And environmental advocates have taken much greater interest in the PSC of late, as the state seeks to meet carbon-emission goals and climate change increasingly exposes the electric grid as outdated.”

Down in Plaquemines

Former Parish Councilman Keith Hinkley led Parish Councilman Benny Rousselle into the runoff by just 152 votes, but the fundraising since then hasn’t been as close. Hinkley had $72,000 in the bank as of last week. Rousselle had about $22,000. (For more, check out this candidate forum from earlier this week with WDSU's Travers Mackel.)

The courts

The robe-and-gavel folks in Baton Rouge are watching two important elections. Judge Hunter Greene, a Republican, is facing Democratic Judge Don Johnson for a seat on the Court of Appeal. In the 19th Judicial District Court, Republican Steve Myers loaned his campaign $10,000 a couple weeks ago, while his opponent, Democrat Gail Horne Ray, underwrote her own $5,000 loan in November.

Tax votes

If you want a quick and dirty snapshot of public sentiment on local taxes, especially ahead of the 2023 fiscal session of the Louisiana Legislature, we’ll get samples from 28 parishes on Election Day. That’s how many parishes are hosting local propositions, which are mostly tax questions (but not in St. Mary, where Parish Council leadership posts are on the ballot). Those parishes include Ascension, Assumption, Bienville, Calcasieu, DeSoto, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Evangeline, Jefferson, Jefferson Davis, Lafourche, LaSalle, Livingston, Morehouse, Rapides, Richland, St. Bernard, St. Helena, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Union, Vernon, Washington, West Carroll and West Feliciana.

Mayoral runoff watch list
--HAMMOND: Mayor Peter Panepinto (Republican) vs. Tracy Washington Wells (Democrat)
--KENTWOOD: Mayor Rochell D. Bates (Democrat) vs. Irma T. Gordon (Democrat)
--CROWLEY: Chad Monceaux (Republican) vs. Mayor Tim Monceaux (Republican)
--DELHI: J. Lynn Lewis (Democrat) vs. Mayor Jesse Washington
--OPELOUSAS: Mayor Julius Alsandor (Democrat) vs. Charlee Renaud Lear (Democrat)
--WESTLAKE: Michael T. Bergeron (Republican) vs. Hal McMillin (Republican)
--ZACHARY: David McDavid (Republican) vs. Francis Nezianya (No Party)
For results at the end of Election Day, visit the Secretary of State’s website at www.sos.la.gov.
For more results and analysis Saturday evening, follow @LaPoliticsNow on Twitter.