Democratic Governors Back-To-Back?

Is it possible for the state of Louisiana to elect a second Democrat to sit in the Governor’s Mansion following the departure of John Bel Edwards? Theoretically, maybe. Realistically? Don’t bet the house on it. But as the old expression goes, politics make strange bedfellows. Many pundits will say that is indeed what it would take for Democrat Shawn Wilson to capture the seat over prospective Republican candidate Jeff Landry in the upcoming gubernatorial election. Unlike the last election where Edwards won a second term that had national attention because the question was whether lightning would strike twice in a deep red state like Louisiana. It did, as Edwards even got the attention of Donald Trump with his victory which also led to a lot of “soul searching” among state Republicans. This time around, as voters prepare to cast their votes in the October primary, Republicans appeared to have settled for their main guy in Attorney General Jeff Landry, who like Trump in the national polls for the Republican nominee, is running miles ahead of his closest Republican candidate. Shawn Wilson, who has had extensive experience in state government is the sword bearer for Democrats and is second to Landry when polled with all of the candidates in the race. But the big question remains is whether Wilson can win the race in a state that is overwhelmingly conservative controlling the seats of power throughout the state. But before Wilson gets to the inauguration, he has to be in the run-off first. The odds do appear to favor Wilson in October, but it is not a given. Monroe resident Don Hopkins said that he is not “entirely convinced” that Wilson will make it to a run-off. Hopkins said that Democratic voters need to look at and pay attention to what Republicans are doing by being solidly behind Landry according to the polls. There was grumbling among Republicans early on when the state party endorsed Landry very early on at the beginning of campaign season. That didn’t stop other Republicans from entering the race, but none of them has made a dent into Landry’s commanding lead. It also probably didn’t hurt Landry after Donald Trump gave him his endorsement. But Hopkins’ main concern is that he feels that the message of Wilson’s candidacy is being lost with the Democratic electorate, particularly young Black voters. He believes that the “interest level” is not where it needs to be, simply because they may not be aware that there is a Black individual running for governor. He attributes the lack of interest among young voters to Black leaders who are not getting the message out often enough among the voters. He says that as October quickly approaches, there should be more community meetings with elected officials to educate the voters on who Shawn Wilson is and to highlight his 25 years of government service under both Democratic and Republican administrations. He also believes that members of the clergy should be involved more in getting the message out, speaking to their congregations, not telling them who to vote for, but stressing the importance of not staying at home on election day. But the one thing that Hopkins says that he fears, is low voter turnout. That, he says could be a result of a lack of interest especially among young Black voters. Republicans are well-financed and will stick to their game plan which is to turn back everything that Edwards did in his eight years in office. Democrat voters already can see what Republicans did in the last session, including Landry who seemed to be in lock-step with other Republican Attorney Generals who continually attacked the Biden administration and were pleased with Supreme Court decisions that favored their causes. Democrat voters may be expecting an ad blitz of campaign messages from Wilson and the state Democratic Party in an effort to highlight Wilson’s agenda and his campaign goals. Hopkins says Democrats should not wait because Republicans will be ready, even if it is one Republican against another in the general. Shawn Wilson has a shot to win it all, albeit a long one. That’s what they said about John Bel Edwards. He beats the odds. Twice. But unless Democrat votes become enthusiastic, believing that their candidate can win by displaying yard signs and holding multiple meetings that the media is aware of, and turn out in large numbers, just imagine what four years of Republican control in baton rouge will look like under a Jeff Landry or any other Republican. There is still time.