Jeremy Alford says that any time he writes about Louisiana’s so-called “jungle primary” system, he usually thinks about Baton Rouge political consultant Roy Fletcher.
“He once told me he disliked the wording. It was something that stuck with me,” Alford writes in his latest column. “Fletcher believes it has negative connotations, and that there are countless other labels that would be a better fit.”
Louisiana has former Gov. Edwin Edwards to thank for ushering in the unique system of electing public officials, Alford adds. To win a governorship in 1972, he had to compete in two year’s worth of elections—three in all, in the partisan primary and subsequent general election. A few years later he asked lawmakers to overhaul the process, creating the jungle the state has today.
Similar systems are used in California and New York, and the Senate president in Pennsylvania proposed legislation last week to bring the open primary to his state.
“Based on an unscientific review of Google news, none or very little of the local coverage in the Quaker State—so far—has included the phrase ‘jungle primary.’” Alford writes.
But whatever Louisiana calls its open primary system, everyone is still tossed into the same ring for the same prize. And right about now, Alford writes, the 2019 jungle seems to be calling out to top fighters.
Read the full column where Alford details how candidates are ramping up for next year’s races.
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.
