Elections in Louisiana

Last updated

The political balance in Louisiana was heavily affected by the post-Hurricane Katrina departure from New Orleans. Heavily Democratic New Orleans lost some 1/3 of its population. The overall effect reduced the Democrats' base of support in the state and turned Louisiana into a Republican-leaning state thereafter. New Orleans remained Democratic, electing Mitch Landrieu as mayor in February 2010. In the 2008 elections, Louisiana sent a mixed result, with the election of U.S. Senator John McCain for President and the reelection of Democratic U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu. The other senator, at the time, was Republican David Vitter.

Contents

Since that election, Republicans have rapidly come to control nearly every federal and statewide office. Both US Senators, Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy, are Republicans. Republicans also hold five of the six U.S. Representative seats from Louisiana. Every statewide office is held by a Republican, and both chambers of the state legislature are majority Republican. By contrast, in 1960, not a single Republican served in either house of the Louisiana legislature. The first Republicans to serve in the legislature since Reconstruction were not elected until 1964, and both—Morley A. Hudson and Taylor W. O'Hearn—came from Shreveport.

In 2010, several Democrats switched parties bringing the statehouse under Republican control. In 2011, the special election victories of Fred Mills and Jonathan Perry switched the balance of power in the state senate, leaving Republicans in control of the state legislature for the first time since Reconstruction. Also, the party switch of Attorney General Buddy Caldwell caused the Republican party to control every statewide office. However, this was broken in 2015, when Democrat John Bel Edwards won the governor's race.

Republicans won the first Senate seat since Reconstruction in 2004, with the election of David Vitter. He became the first popularly elected Republican Senator as well. In 2014, Republicans won both Senate seats for the first time since 1872.

United States presidential election results for Louisiana [1]
Year Republican  /  Whig Democratic Third party(ies)
No. %No. %No. %
2024 1,208,50560.22%766,87038.21%31,6001.57%
2020 1,255,77658.46%856,03439.85%36,2521.69%
2016 1,178,63858.09%780,15438.45%70,2403.46%
2012 1,152,26257.78%809,14140.58%32,6621.64%
2008 1,148,27558.56%782,98939.93%29,4971.50%
2004 1,102,16956.72%820,29942.22%20,6381.06%
2000 927,87152.55%792,34444.88%45,4412.57%
1996 712,58639.94%927,83752.01%143,5368.05%
1992 733,38640.97%815,97145.58%240,66013.44%
1988 883,70254.27%717,46044.06%27,0401.66%
1984 1,037,29960.77%651,58638.18%17,9371.05%
1980 792,85351.20%708,45345.75%47,2853.05%
1976 587,44645.95%661,36551.73%29,6282.32%
1972 686,85265.32%298,14228.35%66,4976.32%
1968 257,53523.47%309,61528.21%530,30048.32%
1964 509,22556.81%387,06843.19%00.00%
1960 230,98028.59%407,33950.42%169,57220.99%
1956 329,04753.28%243,97739.51%44,5207.21%
1952 306,92547.08%345,02752.92%00.00%
1948 72,65717.45%136,34432.75%207,33549.80%
1944 67,75019.39%281,56480.59%690.02%
1940 52,44614.09%319,75185.88%1080.03%
1936 36,79111.16%292,89488.82%930.03%
1932 18,8537.01%249,41892.79%5330.20%
1928 51,16023.70%164,65576.29%180.01%
1924 24,67020.23%93,21876.44%4,0633.33%
1920 38,53830.49%87,51969.24%3390.27%
1916 6,4666.95%79,87585.90%6,6417.14%
1912 3,8334.84%60,87176.81%14,54418.35%
1908 8,95811.93%63,56884.63%2,5913.45%
1904 5,2059.66%47,70888.50%9951.85%
1900 14,23420.96%53,66879.03%40.01%
1896 22,03721.81%77,17576.38%1,8341.82%
1892 26,96323.47%87,92676.53%00.00%
1888 30,66026.46%85,03273.37%1990.17%
1884 46,34742.37%62,59457.22%4580.42%
1880 38,97837.31%65,04762.27%4370.42%
1876 75,31551.65%70,50848.35%00.00%
1872 71,66355.69%57,02944.31%00.00%
1868 33,26329.31%80,22570.69%00.00%
1860 00.00%7,62515.10%42,88584.90%
1856 00.00%22,16451.70%20,70948.30%
1852 17,25548.06%18,64751.94%00.00%
1848 18,48754.59%15,37945.41%00.00%
1844 13,08348.70%13,78251.30%00.00%
1840 11,29659.73%7,61640.27%00.00%
1836 3,58348.26%3,84251.74%00.00%

Louisiana primary

Since 1977, state elections in Louisiana have used the two-round system. The first round of voting has become known as a jungle primary or Louisiana primary, [2] as it serves a similar role to primary elections in other states. On election day, all candidates for the same office appear together on the ballot, often including several candidates from each major party. If one candidate receives over half of the vote in the first round, that candidate wins outright. Otherwise, the top two candidates, regardless of partisan affiliation, proceed to a runoff election.

This primary system is used for state, parish, municipal, and congressional races, [3] but is not used for presidential elections. [3] Louisiana's unique primary system was instituted in 1975 by Democratic governor Edwin Edwards. [4] Until 1997, the open primary election was held in October, meaning that no election would be held in November if the leading candidate won over 50 percent of the vote in October. [4] Between 2008 and 2010, federal races did not use the jungle primary system. [5] [6]

Though strictly speaking it occurs during the general election and so is not a primary election, the general election serves much the same role as a primary if no candidate wins a majority. [7] If no candidate wins a simple majority in the first round, there is a runoff one month later between the top two candidates to determine the winner. This system is also used for United States Senate special elections in Mississippi and Texas, and all special elections for partisan offices in Georgia. [8] It is also used for municipal elections in Chicago.[ citation needed ]

In May 2005, Louisiana passed a law moving the primary back to October, with provisions intended to follow federal law. In June 2006, Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco signed Senate Bill No. 18 (later Act No. 560 ) into law, which took effect in 2008 and returned Congressional races to the closed primary system.

In 2010, the legislature voted to revert federal elections to the nonpartisan blanket primary system with the passage of House Bill 292, which was signed into law by Governor Bobby Jindal on June 25, 2010. [9] Since Louisiana's primary is virtually identical to the Washington state primary system, which was upheld by the US Supreme Court in Washington State Grange v. Washington State Republican Party (2008), it appears to satisfy constitutional concerns. [10]

Louisiana will revert to semi-open party primaries for Congressional elections starting in 2026, with unaffiliated voters allowed to choose which primary they wish to vote in. [11]

Comparison with other voting models

The Louisiana primary is a two-round system. The other popular version is the nonpartisan blanket primary (or top two primary) currently used in Washington and California. In both models, all candidates regardless of party identification run against each other in the first round, and (usually) the top two run against each other in a second round. The differences are:

Administration

The only party labels originally permitted under Louisiana law were Democratic, Republican, and No Party; however, as of 2008, candidates may take the identity of any "registered political party". [12] The primary has been used in statewide elections since 1975. The system was designed by then-Governor Edwin Edwards after he had to run in two grueling rounds of the Democratic Primary in 1971 before facing a general election against a well-funded and well-rested Republican, Dave Treen. (Treen was elected governor under the new system in 1979, defeating five major Democratic candidates.)[ citation needed ]

Louisiana is one of only five states that elects its state officials in odd-numbered years. Louisiana holds elections for these offices every four years in the year preceding a presidential election.[ citation needed ]

Louisiana is one of 18 states with separate elections for governor and lieutenant governor, a process that has resulted in governor-lieutenant governor pairs from different parties.

Between the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and Shelby County v. Holder (a 2013 Supreme Court case), changes to Louisiana election law required preclearance with the United States Department of Justice. [13] In a 2020 study, Louisiana was ranked as the 24th hardest state for citizens to vote in. [14]

As of 2024, Louisiana is the only remaining state without auditable paper ballots, an established best practice for recounts and audits, [15] in any jurisdiction. [16]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Breaux</span> American politician (born 1944)

John Berlinger Breaux is an American lobbyist, attorney, and retired politician from Louisiana. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1972 to 1987 and as a United States Senator from 1987 to 2005. A Southern Democrat, he was considered one of the more conservative national legislators from the Democratic Party. Breaux was a member of the New Democrat Coalition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dave Treen</span> American politician (1928–2009)

David Conner Treen Sr. was an American politician and attorney from Louisiana. A member of the Republican Party, Treen served as U.S. Representative for Louisiana's 3rd congressional district from 1973 to 1980 and the 51st governor of Louisiana from 1980 to 1984. Treen was the first Republican elected to either office since Reconstruction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. Bennett Johnston</span> American politician (born 1932)

John Bennett Johnston Jr. is a retired American attorney, politician, and later lobbyist from Louisiana. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a member the United States Senate from 1972 to 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Politics of Louisiana</span> Politics of a U.S. state

The politics of Louisiana involve political parties, laws and the state constitution, and the many other groups that influence the governance of the state. The state was a one-party Deep South state dominated by the Democratic Party from the end of Reconstruction to the 1960s, forming the backbone of the "Solid South." This was due to the near-total disenfranchisement of the state's large African-American population during this time, who mostly voted Republican. The Civil Rights era turned the state into a competitive one on the federal level, as it voted for the nationwide winner in every election between 1972 and 2004. It remained Democratic on the state and local level until the turn of the 21st century, allowing Republicans to win control of the state legislature and every statewide office in 2011. Republicans won a United States Senate seat for Louisiana in the election of 2004, for the first time since 1876. Republicans captured both seats in the election of 2014 for the first time since 1872. In the election of 2008, the state voted for a losing presidential candidate for the first time since 1968. Democrats won less than 40% of the presidential popular vote in the state in the elections of 2016 and 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elections in California</span>

Elections in California are held to fill various local, state and federal seats. In California, regular elections are held every even year ; however, some seats have terms of office that are longer than two years, so not every seat is on the ballot in every election. Special elections may be held to fill vacancies at other points in time. Recall elections can also be held. Additionally, statewide initiatives, legislative referrals and referendums may be on the ballot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1995 Louisiana gubernatorial election</span>

The 1995 Louisiana gubernatorial election was held on November 18, 1995, to elect the governor of Louisiana.

Karen Carter Peterson is an American lawyer and former politician who served as a member of the Louisiana State House from 1999 to 2010, then as the state senator from the 5th district until her resignation in 2022. She also served as the chair of the Louisiana Democratic Party from 2012 to 2020, becoming the first female chair of the state party. In 2008, Peterson became as Democratic National Committeewoman for Louisiana. In 2017, Peterson was elected vice chair of civic engagement and voter participation for the Democratic National Committee.

The Louisiana Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Louisiana.

Foster Lonnie Campbell Jr. is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party from the U.S. state of Louisiana. Since 2003, he has been a member of the Louisiana Public Service Commission. He served in the Louisiana State Senate from 1976 to 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Republican Party of Louisiana</span> Louisiana affiliate of the Republican Party

The Republican Party of Louisiana(LAGOP) (French: Parti républicain de Louisiane, Spanish: Partido Republicano de Luisiana) is the affiliate of the Republican Party in the U.S. state of Louisiana. Its chair is Derek Babcock who was elected in 2024. It is currently the dominant party in the state, controlling all but one of Louisiana's six U.S. House seats, both U.S. Senate seats, all statewide executive offices, and both houses of the state legislature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2004 United States Senate election in Louisiana</span>

The 2004 United States Senate election in Louisiana was held on November 2, 2004. Incumbent Democratic Senator John Breaux decided to retire after three terms in office. Republican Representative David Vitter won the open seat with more than 50% of the primary vote. He thus avoided a runoff that would have otherwise been held on December 4, became the first Louisiana Republican elected to the U.S. Senate since 1876, and the first ever to be popularly elected. This election was the first time ever that a Republican won a full term to this Senate seat in Louisiana. The third-placed candidate, John Kennedy, later won this same seat as a Republican in 2016 and 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1992 United States presidential election in Louisiana</span>

The 1992 United States presidential election in Louisiana took place on November 3, 1992, as part of the 1992 United States presidential election. Voters chose nine representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 United States Senate election in Louisiana</span>

The 2014 United States Senate election in Louisiana was held on November 4, 2014, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Louisiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 United States elections</span>

The 2014 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 4, 2014, in the middle of Democratic President Barack Obama's second term. A typical six-year itch midterm election suffered by most second-term presidents, this election saw the Republican Party retaining control of the House of Representatives and winning control of the Senate, while furthering their gains in the governorships and state legislatures. Because of these Republican gains, the election was commonly cited as a "red wave" election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Louisiana gubernatorial election</span>

The 2015 Louisiana gubernatorial election was held on November 21, 2015, to elect the governor of Louisiana. Incumbent Republican governor Bobby Jindal was not eligible to run for re-election to a third term because of term limits established by the Louisiana Constitution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elbert Guillory</span> American politician (born 1944)

Elbert Lee Guillory is an American politician who is a former member of the Louisiana State Senate. A Republican, he represented District 24, including his native Opelousas, and several rural precincts, from May 2, 2009, when he won a special election, until January 11, 2016, when his full term to which he was elected in 2011 ended. Guillory previously served from 2006 to 2009 as state representative for District 40. Guillory is running to represent Louisiana's 6th congressional district in the 2024 election.

William Franklin Spooner, known as Frank Spooner, is an oil and natural gas producer in Monroe in Ouachita Parish in northeastern Louisiana, who has been active since the early 1970s in his state's Republican Party. In the fall of 1976, Spooner waged a strong but losing race for the United States House of Representatives for Louisiana's 5th congressional district in a bid to succeed incumbent Otto Passman, who had been unseated in the Democratic primary by farmer/businessman Jerry Huckaby, then from Ringgold in Bienville Parish. Therefore, instead of facing Passman, as he had expected, Spooner competed with Huckaby for a relatively rare open seat in the state's congressional delegation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 United States Senate election in Louisiana</span>

The 2016 United States Senate election in Louisiana took place on November 8, 2016, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Louisiana, concurrently with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

Robert Max Ross was a Republican activist and a candidate for numerous statewide and local offices who resided in Mangham in northeastern Louisiana. He was among the earliest advocates for the Republican political movement at a time when no GOP candidate had been elected statewide in more than a century. He ran as one of two candidates in the Republican primaries for governor in 1972 and Louisiana's 5th congressional district seat in 1974. After Louisiana adopted the jungle primary system, Ross qualified again for governor in 1983 and also the United States Senate in 1984. He additionally ran for the Louisiana State Senate as well as mayor of Mangham during other election years.

References

  1. ↑ Leip, David. "Presidential General Election Results Comparison – Louisiana". US Election Atlas. Archived from the original on October 28, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  2. ↑ Brinlee, Morgan. "Louisiana Has Something Called A Jungle Primary". Bustle. Retrieved 2018-10-02.
  3. 1 2 Barrow, Bill (8 February 2011). "Department of Justice gives approval to Louisiana's open primaries". The Times-Picayune . Archived from the original on February 9, 2011. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  4. 1 2 Mooney, Chris (13 November 2002). "Why Does Louisiana Have Such an Odd Election System?". Slate.com. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  5. ↑ "Louisiana Law Search". Legis.state.la.us. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  6. ↑ Archived 2010-08-12 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ↑ "Primary Elections by State: Louisiana". Openprimaries.org. Retrieved 2018-05-17.
  8. ↑ "2017 Georgia Code :: Title 21 - Elections :: Chapter 2 - Elections and Primaries Generally :: Article 14 - Special Elections and Primaries Generally; Municipal Terms of Office :: § 21-2-540. Conduct of special elections generally". Justia Law. Retrieved 2018-10-02.
  9. ↑ "2010 Regular Session - Instrument Information". Archived from the original on 2010-08-12. Retrieved 2010-11-05.
  10. ↑ "Washington State Grange v. Washington State Republican Party" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2010-01-07. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  11. ↑ "Louisiana reshapes primary system for congressional elections". AP News. 2024-01-20. Retrieved 2024-06-17.
  12. ↑ Political Party Registration Archived April 17, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  13. ↑ Liptak, Adam (25 June 2013). "Supreme Court Invalidates Key Part of Voting Rights Act". The New York Times . Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  14. ↑ J. Pomante II, Michael; Li, Quan (15 Dec 2020). "Cost of Voting in the American States: 2020". Election Law Journal: Rules, Politics, and Policy. 19 (4): 503–509. doi: 10.1089/elj.2020.0666 . S2CID   225139517 . Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  15. ↑ "Views on Election Integrity in 2020-22: GOP & Trump Voters". The Center for Election Innovation & Research. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  16. ↑ "Verifier". Verified Voting. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.