Jeremy Alford: State candidates keep investing in themselves

Candidates for state-sanctioned offices have so far put $2.6 million of their own money behind self-funding campaign bids this year, according to financial information maintained by the Louisiana Ethics Administration.

While that might sound like a lot of jingle, the pace of loans are slightly behind historic levels — but more borrowed cash (a lot more) is probably on the way. That’s because campaign loans traditionally peak during the last quarter of the calendar year, based on campaign finance filing patterns dating back 34 years.

During the last midterm election year in 2018, municipal- and state-level candidates borrowed roughly $4 million from themselves from January through
September. During October, November and December, though, loans topped an additional $10 million.

As such, the final run on bank accounts for this election cycle has begun. Last month alone, as the state marked its traditional start to campaign season on Labor Day, state-regulated candidates poured nearly $300,000 into their war chests.

Each loan tells a different story of a hot race or an ambitious personality or a consultant striking it rich or an extra push that’s sorely needed.

—SENATE DISTRICT 17: The special election in Senate District 17 in the West Baton Rouge area has a couple of candidates who aren’t afraid to spend big. Most recently, Caleb Kleinpeter of Port Allen put a $50,000 loan into his campaign four weeks ago. Prior to that, he already had $6,200 tied up in the race.

During August and September, Dr. Kirk Rousset of Oscar also invested $52,500 into his own run. That makes state Rep. Jeremy LaCombe, the Democratic, the financial outlier in this contest as he continues to rely solely on fundraising.

—SHREVEPORT MAYOR: The third largest one-time loan of the entire year (so far) belongs to state Sen. Greg Tarver, who put $100,000 into his bid for mayor of Shreveport in July. And he’s not the only one in the race making and taking loans. Attorney Tom Arceneaux threw in $20,000 of his own cash and Caddo Commissioner Mario Chavez ponied up $52,500.

—ALEX MAYOR: Many of the candidates for mayor of Alexandria have dipped into their own pockets, including incumbent Mayor Jeff Hall, a former legislator who dug deep for a $75,000 loan. Lorenzo Davis likewise put up $40,000 and Catherine Davidson was good for $5,000. Not taking loans in this race is former Mayor Jacques Roy.

—THIBODAUX MAYOR: Down the bayou in Lafourche Parish, Board of Elementary and Secondary Education member Sandy Holloway is running for mayor of Thibodaux and has so far moved $33,000 into her campaign. Also running is Parks and Recreation Director Kevin Clement, who has not reported a loan for this race.

—COURT OF APPEAL: During this past spring, three candidates for different Court of Appeal seats dropped large loans into their state campaign finance accounts, including $400,000 from Stephen Windhorst of Gretna, $205,000 from Page McClendon of Madisonville and $107,000 from Frances Pitman of Shreveport. A few months later, upon the close of qualifying, all three men were unopposed. So let that be a learning lesson. In Baton Rouge’s big Court of Appeal race, all three candidates have deposited loans, including $50,000 from Judge Hunter Greene, $40,000 from Judge Don Johnson and $589 from Judge Beau Higginbotham. In the competitive Court of Appeal race down the bayou, Judge Steven Miller of Thibodaux loaned his campaign $10,000 four weeks ago. His lone opponent, Speaker Pro Tem Tanner Magee of Houma, has made no such loans. In other news, former Congressman Joseph Cao of New Orleans transferred $10,000 in August to his campaign for the at-large seat in the 4th Circuit. Fellow candidates Karen Herman and Marie Williams have also loaned their campaigns $5,000 and $20,0000, respectively.

—PSC 4: Incumbent Public Service Commissioner Mike Francis put $15,000 into his campaign back in May. Fellow Republican Shalon Latour of Iowa responded in July with a $50,000 loan of his own. The only other contender in the PSC’s 4th District, Keith C. Bodin, has not followed suit.

—PLAQUEMINES PARISH PREZ: Half of the candidates running for Plaquemines Parish president this fall have real skin in the game. Former Parish Councilman Keith Hinkley has underwritten $43,000 in funding for his own campaign and former Parish Councilman Burghart Turner, the loan Democrat, cut a check for $10,000.

More campaign loans are surely showing up in war chests across the state, but until updated reports are filed with the Ethics Administration, we won’t know exactly how many or how much. Based on current campaign finance trends, however, the borrowing and the spending will continue to escalate alongside the rising costs of politics.

For more Louisiana political news, visit www. LaPolitics.com.