Jeremy Alford: Stars line up for big GOP wins

After years of rapid growth that led to solid majorities in different corners of the state, Republicans are positioned for what can only be described as dominance in Louisiana.
If polling trends hold, last week’s qualifying period could lead to there being no Democrats at all in statewide elected office.

Super-majorities for the GOP are already within reach in the House and Senate as well, and the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education may end up with the most conservative membership it has ever seen. 

Under the leadership of Party Chair Katie Bernhardt, who momentarily made herself a potential candidate earlier in the cycle, Democrats have never looked weaker in Louisiana.

And, frankly, the landscape will probably only worsen for Democrats over the next few years.

Their best bet is to rebuild and find a contributing role in policymaking as Republicans are left to fight themselves — and make sure they continue to win on the redrawing of Louisiana’s congressional map, which will probably include a new minority district in time for next year’s cycle. 

If there were any big surprises to come out of the qualifying period for governor, they originated at a Wednesday night rally hosted by Attorney General Jeff Landry at the Texas Club in Baton Rouge. 

Everyone who was supposed to sign up this week at the Secretary of State’s Office signed up, but there were a few donors connected to the other candidates who also attended Landry’s star-studded event this week.

There’s still a lot of game to play and the other players are primed, but Capitoland seems to know where the momentum resides at this hour.

Other major candidates running for governor include fellow Republicans state Sen. Sharon Hewitt, state Rep. Richard Nelson, Treasurer John Schroder and former business association president Stephen Waguespack. Independent attorney Hunter Lundy and former Transportation Secretary Shawn Wilson, the lone marketable Democrat, are in the mix as well. 

Among our other statewide races, Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain was the only incumbent who drew no opposition. In other contests, the early favorites are clearly Billy Nungesser for lieutenant governor and Tim Temple for insurance commissioner.

Meanwhile, there will be incredibly competitive races for secretary of state, attorney general and treasurer — and you’ll be hearing a lot about them in this space in the coming weeks.

In the Louisiana Senate, there were eight Democrats re-elected due to no opposition and 20 Republicans, meaning the GOP has to win only six more seats for a super-majority.

The story is similar in the House, where 28 Democrats have have been re-elected alongside 56 Republicans, meaning the GOP needs another 14 votes there for a super-majority.

That said, there are slew of red-hot legislative races now underway and overall turnover could reach as high as one-third, which will definitely keep government relations professionals busy next year. 

Then there’s the local level, which will produce of slew of other races, like those for parish presidencies. Of the 22 parish president seats up up for grabs this cycle, only four
went unopposed: Archie Chaisson in Lafourche, Robby Miller in Tangipahoa, Cynthia Lee-Sheng in Jefferson and Major Thibaut in Pointe Coupee.

There’s plenty of activity on the statewide ballot this fall — and locally, too, wherever you live.

With qualifying finally out of the way, the election cycle can begin in earnest, which means these candidates and campaigns will be working overtime to catch your attention.

In exchange, all they want is your vote. Who you ultimately give it to is up to you.

For more Louisiana political news, visit www. LaPolitics.com or follow Alford on Twitter @ LaPoliticsNow.