Jeremy Alford: Louisiana's big race gets off to a slow start

By January 2014, during the last open race for governor in Louisiana, the field of candidates was already hopping and bopping.
Gov. John Bel Edwards, then a state representative, had been raising money for months and building his name recognition. Former U.S. Sen. David Vitter had recently announced on YouTube and Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne, who would go on to endorse Edwards the following year, already had an active website and was publicly campaigning.
As we enter the same pre-election cycle stretch in January 2022, ahead of the 2023 governor’s race, there’s not a candidate to be found. The closest thing we have to a declared player is Treasurer John Schroder, who told supporters via text last week he “will be entering the governor’s race,” while telling reporters it was not an official announcement.
Why is this contest taking so long to take shape? There are obvious reasons, like our recent string of world-is-burning events, from hurricanes and flooding to COVID-19. Raw politics were neither welcomed nor appropriate at multiple junctures over the last two years.
The personalities are different as well. Eight years ago, everyone was eager to differentiate themselves from former Gov. Bobby Jindal and the disastrous budget he was leaving behind. Edwards might be a polarizing figure to some, but he’s unlikely to fit the archetype of a final-term Jindal.
Right now, there’s no clear benefit to being first, especially when politicos across the state have a good idea about who might make the field, aside from Schroder.
“The biggest difference this time is that the worst kept secret in Louisiana politics is that (Attorney General) Jeff Landry and (Lt. Gov.) Billy Nungesser are going to jump into this race,” said pollster and consultant John Couvillon of JMC Enterprises. “But the fact that they aren’t announced yet may be giving other candidates pause.”
There’s no doubting the seriousness of the two men. Landry has a top staffer, Solicitor General Elizabeth Murrill, who’s telling people she’s interested in running to replace the attorney general. Nungesser is also said to be staffing up.
Other Republicans, like Sen. Rick Ward of Maringouin and Rep. Richard Nelson of Mandeville, have expressed interest in the race. But speculation is building about the plans of Sen. Sharon Hewitt of Slidell, who has kept her politics quiet and her fundraising aggressive.
We did get a bit of preview of the GOP side of the race recently when Landry sent a letter to one of his likely opponents, Schroder. In the letter, the attorney general asked Schroder to follow the lead of West Virginia Treasurer Riley Moore, who announced last week his state would no longer invest with BlockRock, Inc. The company has been under fire from conservatives since its CEO wants to oversee a “decarbonization of the global economy,” Landry wrote in his letter. These net-zero goals don’t sit well with Landry, an unapologetic champion of the oil and gas industry.
Then there’s the other side. As has been the case for the past several months, all is quiet on the Democratic front. Aside from Sen. Gary Smith of Norco thinking about the race, no other Dems have emerged as likely candidates.
Right now all of the players involved are trying to run for governor without announcing and exposing themselves, said Democratic consultant and direct mail guru Trey Ourso. “Seems like it’s mostly jockeying going on,” he added.
Still, there’s definitely less jockeying to the left of the field. When, exactly, will we finally see more action from the Democratic side of things?
“I think people are just … Actually, I really don’t have a good answer for that,” Ourso said with a laugh. “I believe there are people who are interested in it, and they’re just trying to see if there’s a reasonable path.”
Those paths will have to make themselves known sooner than later, because the clock is ticking. After Washington Mardi Gras this month and redistricting and campaign finance deadlines next month, room for jockeying will start running out.
For more Louisiana political news, visit
www.LaPolitics.com or follow Alford on Twitter @LaPoliticsNow.