You probably haven’t heard much about the election in the state Supreme Court’s Third District. But you will soon, says Jeremy Alford in his latest column.
“There’s national interest in the race, with expectations that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce will get involved, and heavy-duty super PACs are already lining up on both sides of the contest,” Alford writes, noting it’s the only Supreme Court race on the fall ballot.
And while limited geographically for voters, it’s outcome will have statewide ramifications, he says. The victorious candidate will serve a 10-year term and replace Justice Theriot Knoll, one of the three Democrats on the Supreme Court, explains Alford. The other four justices are Republicans.
“The business lobby is all in for District Court Judge Marilyn Castle, especially the oil and gas sector, which views the election as an opportunity to get ahead of the historic lawsuits filed against them for various kinds of damages, some dating back generations,” Alford says. “The stakes are certainly high on that side of the game, which is why many are looking for trial lawyers to coalesce behind Appellate Judge Jimmy Genovese, who contends his support is actually from a much broader spectrum. It’s somewhat personal for the business lobby.”
Alford says the election is a chance to counter the victory of GOP Justice Jeff Hughes in 2012, when the trial lawyer-backed Citizens for Clean Water and Land PAC dumped a half million into TV on his behalf.
The same faction also helped Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards in his election last year, he explains, adding that business associations of all stripes are hoping to be more competitive on that front this go around.
History may be on Genovese’s side, Alford says, as every Third District justice elected since 1960 has come directly from his Third Circuit Court of Appeal, which is one of the candidate’s key talking points.
“But he’s going to have to fight for it,” Alford writes. “The latest campaign finance reports show $261,000 in the bank for Genovese to Castle’s $234,000. And both of those numbers are likely to climb.”
Jeremy Alford publishes LaPolitics Weekly, a newsletter on Louisiana politics, at LaPolitics.com. Follow him on Twitter, or on Facebook. He can be reached at JJA@LaPolitics.com.
