Saturday’s Louisiana primaries – originally scheduled for September but delayed by Hurricane Gustav – produced competitive runoffs in two districts. In the New Orleans-based 2nd CD, Democratic Rep. William Jefferson once again faces a tough runoff to retain his seat, this time while awaiting trial. In the Shreveport-based 4th CD, the question of whether a Democrat or a Republican will succeed retiring GOP Rep. Jim McCrery won’t be settled until December.
LA-02 William Jefferson
To the extent people outside of Louisiana know of Jefferson, they know that in 2005, the FBI launched a bribery investigation of him in that revealed he had hidden $90,000 in cash in his freezer at his DC residence. But ever since, voters have paid attention to not only his legal woes but the political future of this district, which remains significantly depopulated since Hurricane Katrina.
In November 2006, Jefferson secured 30 percent of the vote in a 13-candidate, multi-party open primary. One month later, Jefferson defeated state African-American state Rep. Karen Carter 57 percent to 43 percent to retain his seat. On Saturday, Jefferson
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