But the race shifted dramatically in recent months as Vitter clashed with other Republican candidates and Edwards cast him as no different than Jindal in a state that is struggling economically. When I decided to make this race with Wendy, that I wanted to pursue new challenges outside the Senate no matter what, I’d reached my personal term limit. A line of Republicans interested in the seat has already formed.
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Yet Edwards, a Catholic with a Boy Scout earnestness who comes from a family of sheriffs, won by a larger margin, 56 to 44 percent, than any Louisiana Democrat running for governor since Edwin Edwards reclaimed the office after a four-year absence by beating David Duke in 1991. Mr. Vitter was thought to be that Republican, given his overwhelming fund-raising advantage, unquestioned conservative reputation and proven skill at crushing challengers.
Edwin Edwards and John Bel Edwards are not related.
Edwards benefited from a primary in which he largely escaped attacks while the Republicans slammed each other.
Vitter’s defeat is a harsh blow in a once-promising political career. He reiterated that Louisiana didn’t belong to a political party, but to all Louisianans. In one ad, an announcer intones, “Vitter chose prostitutes over patriots”, implying that he answered a sex worker’s call during a veteran’s program, NPR reported. The governor, who dropped his bid for the Republican presidential nomination last week after getting little traction in polls, even refused to renew existing levies.
It once seemed so unlikely that a Democrat would be able to win the election that several big names in the party “choose not to run for higher office this election cycle because their prospects of winning looked so weak”, notes the New Orleans Times-Picayune. Mary Landrieu, who ironically was the last Democrat elected statewide in 2008, was soundly defeated in 2014, though she gained more votes than any other Louisiana Democrat during the seven-year losing streak until Saturday night.
Vitter, 54, was haunted during the race by his entanglement in a 2007 prostitution scandal in Washington.
Mr. Vitter, who won re-election to the U.S. Senate in 2010 by 19 points, was once a heavy favorite. (Source) Clearly, Vitter’s loss was not a rejection of Louisiana Republicans per se but a specific rebuke of him. It was the first election Vitter had ever lost.
So Jindal can’t escape blame, and ill will, for Vitter’s debacle, even while he might quietly take credit for playing a hand in it. Charles Boustany and John Fleming.
Vitter introduced a bill on Tuesday that would prohibit the US from admitting any Syrian refugees.
“I thought it was very gracious”. “I’m going to go duck hunting with my son”.
Not everyone who might jump into the Senate race next year would be a Vitter ally. Angelle was one of Vitter’s Republican opponents in the gubernatorial primary. Vitter’s concession speech was surprisingly gracious, and Edwards was correspondingly magnanimous in victory.
The Republican coasted to an easy victory Saturday against East Baton Rouge Mayor-President Kip Holden, a Democrat, after fighting for his spot in the runoff.
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Republicans own all other statewide offices and control the Senate and the House. “I moved here two years ago under Jindal, and he has not been good for the state”. Vitter also had to overcome voters’ frustration with the current Republican Governor, Bobby Jindal, who is term limited.
