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“This is just slicing and dicing New Orleans up,” said state Rep. Neil Abramson of Uptown New Orleans. “This plan from Jefferson Parish is their attempt to get them 100 percent whole at the expense of New Orleans.”
State Rep. Cedric Richmond’s dominance in Saturday’s four-way Democratic primary election was also on display in Uptown precincts, according to an analysis of results posted by the Secretary of State’s office. Not only did Richmond win each of the Uptown wards with more than 50 percent, he also took nearly every individual precinct. Among the results:
Richmond’s 61-percent victory district-wide over his closest competitor, state Rep. Juan LaFonta’s 21 percent, was similar to results in wards 10, 11, 12, 13 and 17, which all came within a point or two of the same margins. Only in wards 14 and 16, which run roughly between Jefferson and South Carrollton, did LaFonta pull closer to 30 percent and hold Richmond to the low 50s. Out of nearly 100 precincts that vote in these wards, Richmond lost only four to LaFonta: Ward 11’s precinct 8, Ward 12’s precinct 6, Ward 14’s precinct 17 and Ward 16’s precinct 5.
Early voting begins today for this year's Congressional primary election, with 12 candidates vying for their parties' nominations for both U.S. House and Senate.
It’s a long-established storyline of the 2010 Congressional elections that national Democrats see U.S. Rep. Anh “Joseph” Cao as one of the most vulnerable Republican seats in Congress, and last week they chose state Rep. Cedric Richmond as their candidate to do so. On Friday, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced Richmond’s selection into the “Red to Blue” program, which highlights the challengers they believe have the best chances of winning so that Democratic donors around the country can channel their donations into competitive races. The committee noted Richmond’s “strong early fundraising” in their announcement. “Cedric Richmond has come out of the gate strong and built a lot of early excitement for his campaign to put this seat in the hands of someone who reflects this district and supports President Obama,” committee Chairman Chris Van Hollen said in the announcement. “Red to Blue will give him the financial and structural edge he needs to remain on the road to victory in November and ensure the people of this New Orleans based district are represented by someone who shares their values.”
The two state legislators vying for the Democratic nomination to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Anh “Joseph” Cao both dug into their war chests in April, May and June to keep pace with the incumbent on campaign spending, according to Federal Election Commission reports filed this week. State Rep. Cedric Richmond actually outspent the Congressman by about $20,000, doling out $113,293 to Cao’s $91,444 in expenditures. State Rep. Juan LaFonta was right behind Cao with $90,672 in spending. Cao, however, was the only one of the three candidates to raise more than he spent and grow his war chest in the second quarter, receiving $139,304 to finish with $359,106 in the bank. Richmond raised $84,695 to finish with $250,222, and LaFonta raised $66,809, dropping his campaign account to $30,407 heading into July and the Aug.
The number of candidates running for a number of seats in this year’s elections swelled on Friday, the last day of filing, as area Congressmen drew new challengers and a crowd of Democrats joined the race for lieutenant governor.U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise, who had previously appeared uncontested, drew two challengers on Friday. New Orleans resident Myron Katz filed as the only Democratic candidate, and Arden Wells of Ponchatoula filed as a third-party candidate. A number of new challengers to Republican U.S. Rep. Ahn Cao also jumped in, including a primary challenger, Norman Paul Billiott. Eugene Green and Gary Johnson will join state Reps. Cedric Richmond and Juan LaFonta in the Democratic Party primary.
While U.S. Rep. Ahn “Joseph” Cao still holds a slight fundraising lead in his bid for a second term, state Rep. Cedric Richmond has nearly as much to spend as Cao in this year's race for the New Orleans-based seat in Congress. Uptown donors have contributed more than $25,000 to the Congressional race since 2009, campaign finance records show. Richmond must first face colleague state Rep. Juan LaFonta in the Aug. 28 Democratic primary. The winner faces Cao on Nov.
While U.S. Rep. Ahn “Joseph” Cao still holds a slight fundraising lead in his bid for a second term, state Rep. Cedric Richmond has nearly as much to spend as Cao in this year's race for the New Orleans-based seat in Congress. Uptown donors have contributed more than $25,000 to the Congressional race since 2009, campaign finance records show. Richmond must first face colleague state Rep. Juan LaFonta in the Aug. 28 Democratic primary. The winner faces Cao on Nov.
