LOUISIANA'S CONGRESSIONAL ELECTIONS, 2006

The first round of the 'Louisiana House election of 2006' were held on Tuesday, November 7, 2006. The terms of all seven Representatives to the United States House of Representatives will expire on January 3, 2007, and will be put up for contest. The winning candidates will serve a two-year term from January 3, 2007 to January 3, 2009. If necessary, a runoff round will be held on December 9, 2006.
Louisiana uses a unique voting system to determine its representation in the U.S. Congress. Elections in Louisiana—with the exception of U.S. presidential elections—follow a variation of the open primary system called the jungle primary. Candidates of any and all parties are listed on one ballot; voters need not limit themselves to the candidates of one party. Unless one candidate takes more than 50% of the vote in the first round, a run-off election is then held between the top two candidates, who may in fact be members of the same party. This means that the outcome of some races might not be known until over a month later than the rest of the country.
The Louisiana races, especially those in the southern portion of the state, will all have been impacted to some extent as a result of Hurricane Katrina, as well as Hurricane Rita, both of which have caused massive damage within Louisiana. For example, most of New Orleans' majority African-American communities were displaced by Katrina. It should also be noted that Democratic Governor Kathleen Blanco is unpopular at this moment with a 15% net approval rating according to a recent Survey USA poll.
All Louisiana Congressmen won re-election and avoided a run-off except Democrat William Jefferson of New Orleans, under investigation for corruption. He won a run-off against fellow Democrat Karen Carter.
Louisiana congressional districts


Contents
Individual District Races
References
See also

Individual District Races


===1st Congressional District===
CandidatePartyOfficial websiteInformationVotes% of Total
'Bobby Jindal' (Incumbent)Republicanhttp://www.bobbyjindal.com/former Louisiana Secretary of Department of Health & Hospitals, first elected 2004130,27788%
Stacey TallitschDemocrathttp://staceyforcongress.com/Computer engineer from Metairie10,8887%
David GereightyDemocrathttp://www.gereightyforcongress.comElectrical Engineer from Metairie5,0044%
Peter BearyLibertarianhttp://www.la.lp.org/PETERBEARY.htmlFrom River Ridge1,6701%

Incumbent Congressman Bobby Jindal is quite popular statewide, having narrowly lost the 2003 gubernatorial election, and he easily won re-election and avoided a run-off in the safely Republican First District.
===2nd Congressional District===
CandidatePartyOfficial websiteInformationVotes% of Total
'Bill Jefferson' (Incumbent)Democrathttp://www.jeffersonforcongress.com/First elected in 1990; under investigation on corruption charges at the time, now indicted on numerous charges including but not limited to corruption.27,70629.98%
Karen CarterDemocrathttp://www.karencarterforcongress.com/State Representative19,97221.61%
Derrick ShepherdDemocrathttp://www.derrickshepherd.com/State Senator, representing Marrero16,62117.98%
Joe LavigneRepublicanhttp://www.joelavigne.com/Lawyer12,40513.42%
Troy CarterDemocrathttp://www.troycarterforcongress.com/Former State Representative and New Orleans City Council member, candidate in 2002 New Orleans mayoral election11,05211.96%
Eric T. BradleyRepublican1,1421.24%
Regina BartholomewDemocrathttp://www.bartholomew06.com/Attorney for Orleans Parish School Board1,0911.18%
John EdwardsDemocrathttp://www.johnedwardsforcongress.com/659.71%
Scott BarronDemocrat611.66%
Gregory "Rhumbline" KahnLibertarian397.43%
M.V. "Vinny" MendozaDemocrathttp://www.vinnymendoza.com/Ran for 1st Congressional District seat in 2004396.53%
Lawrence William "Lance" von Uhde IIIRepublicanFlorist248.27%
Deven "D.C." CollinsDemocrat117.13%

Incumbent Congressman William Jefferson (D) has been under intense investigation and the FBI has claimed that it has videotaped him accepting $100,000 in bribes. The police also found money in Jefferson's freezer that was hidden amidst frozen food products. Jefferson has also been stripped of his membership in the Ways and Means Committee as a result of this scandal. While it was very unlikely this district would switch to the Republican Party, there is a strong possibility of Democratic challenger Karen Carter knocking off Jefferson. The seat is located in heavily Democratic New Orleans. No Republican has represented this district since Reconstruction. A Republican lawyer, Joe Lavigne, entered the race against Jefferson, while the Louisiana Democratic Party endorsed State Representative Karen Carter, the first time in recent memory that the state party has backed a challenger to its own incumbent Congressman. [1]
The top two finishers, Bill Jefferson and Karen Carter faced each other in a runoff round of voting on December 9, with incumbent Jefferson being reelected.
===3rd Congressional District===
CandidatePartyOfficial websiteInformationVotes%
'Charlie Melancon' (Incumbent)Democrathttp://www.melanconforcongress.org/First elected 2004; former president of American Sugar Cane League, from Napoleonville74,86955%
Craig RomeroRepublicanhttp://www.craigromero.com/State Senator from New Iberia54,86840%
James Lee Blake, Jr.Libertarianhttp://la.lp.org/james_lee_blake.htmlFrom Franklin4,1893%
Olangee "OJ" BreechDemocratFrom Laplace2,1642%

In a December 2004 runoff, now-incumbent Charlie Melancon (D) squeaked into Congress by 569 votes over Billy Tauzin III, the son and namesake of his popular predecessor. Nevertheless, he was easily re-elected in this swing district.
===4th Congressional District===
CandidatePartyOfficial websiteInformationVotes% of Total
'Jim McCrery' (Incumbent)RepublicanFirst elected 1988; lawyer, former board member of Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI)74,86955%
Artis CashDemocrathttp://www.drartiscash.com/Pastor of Shreveport Christian Church54,86840%
Patti CoxDemocrathttp://www.myspace.com/patti4congress/Environmental consultant from Shreveport4,1893%
Chester T. KelleyRepublicanhttp://www.chesterkelley.com/Restaurant owner, Real Estate professional, past President of the Northwest Louisiana Restaurant Association, Vietnam War Veteran, US Air Force Captain, Retired.2,1642%

Incumbent five-term Congressman Jim McCrery easily won re-election and avoided a run-off in this conservative North Louisiana district.
===5th Congressional District===
CandidatePartyOfficial websiteInformationVotes% of Total
'Rodney Alexander' (Incumbent)Republicanhttp://www.rodneyalexanderforcongress.com/First elected 2002; From Quitman78,83568%
Gloria Williams HearnDemocrathttp://www.hearnforcongress.com/Educator and consultant from Pineville33,46629%
Brent SandersLibertarianFrom Alexandria1,8872%
John WattsNo Party/Other (?)From Bastrop1,2661%

Two-term incumbent Rodney Alexander (R), first elected in 2002, began his 2004 re-election campaign as an Democrat but switched parties to run as a Republican just before the filing deadline. He easily won re-election and avoided a run-off
===6th Congressional District===
CandidatePartyOfficial websiteInformationVotes% of Total
'Richard H. Baker' (Incumbent)Republicanhttp://www.richardhbaker.com/First elected 1986; From Baton Rouge94,64083%
Richard M. FontanesiLibertarianFrom Baton Rouge19,64417%

Republican incumbent Richard H. Baker, first elected in 1986, was easily re-elected and avoided a run-off.
===7th Congressional District===
CandidatePartyOfficial websiteInformationVotes% of Total
'Charles Boustany' (Incumbent)Republicanhttp://www.charlesboustany.comFirst elected 2004; Heart surgeon from Lafayette113,48674%
Mike StaggDemocrathttp://www.mikestagg.com/Information technology entrepreneur from Lafayette47,00729%

Incumbent Charles Boustany won 55% to 45% in the December 2004 runoff, was widely tapped for reelection in his relatively conservative Southwest Louisiana district. He got a break when Chris John, the Democrat who represented this district from 1997 until his Senate run in 2004, decided not to run again. Boustany was reelected with a large margin and avoided a runnoff.

References


1. Democratic Party in La. Backs Rival Of Jefferson

See also



United States House elections, 2006

United States House elections, 2006 complete list

United States Congressional Delegations from Louisiana

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