Local elections will drive turnout as well

When voters head to the polls to complete the runoff process this weekend, many of them will select individuals to help manage their parishes and cities.

While politicos and non-politicos alike give little mind to assessors and sheriffs from locales where they don’t reside, those officials can nonetheless get a phone call returned from a state lawmaker faster than most wheel-greasing lobbyists.

One of those scheduled runoff contests has already been decided in Ascension Parish, where President-elect Clint Cointment was declared unopposed when former ATC Commissioner Murphy J. Painter withdrew.

In other parishes, there are 14 races for sheriff, five for assessor, five for clerk, four for parish president and two for mayor.

From the ranks of soon-to-be former legislators, Sen. Mike Walsworth of West Monroe and Rep. Andy Anders of Vidalia are in runoffs for clerk jobs and Rep. Steve Pugh of Ponchatoula has made it to the final round for a mayoral post.

Here’s a closer look at other parishes include:

  • Assumption: Clerk of Court: Erin Hebert & Annette Smith Joseph
  • Lafourche: Parish President: Archie Chaisson III & “Luci” Sposito
  • LaSalle: Sheriff: Scott Franklin & Charles “Chopper” Turnage
  • Madison: Sheriff: Sammie Byrd & Donnell Rose
  • Natchitoches: Parish President: John Richmond & Lee Waskom
  • Ouachita: Clerk of Court: Dana Benson & Michael A. “Mike” Walsworth
  • Rapides: Sheriff: “Kris” Cloessner & Mark Wood; Mayor Town of Ball: Terry Allen Baker & “Gail” Wilking
  • St. Tammany: Sheriff: “Tim” Lentz & “Randy” Smith; Parish President: Patricia “Pat” Brister & Michael “Mike” Cooper
  • Terrebonne: Sheriff: Blayne “Bubba” Bergeron & “Tim” Soignet

 

About Jeremy Alford 227 Articles
Jeremy Alford is an independent journalist and the co-author of LONG SHOT, which recounts Louisiana's 2015 race for governor. His bylines appear regularly in The New York Times and he has served as an on-camera analyst for CNN, FOX News, MSNBC and C-SPAN.

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