The action starts today at the secretary of state’s office off of Essen Lane and at local clerks offices all around the state. If candidates want to run in the fall elections they’ll have to sign up during the qualifying period that kicked off this morning and concludes Thursday afternoon.
The big office to watch, as is usually the case every four years, is governor. While there has been some speculation about whether New Orleans businessman John Georges, the co-owner of The Advocate, would run, all signs are pointing toward no.
His pollster Verne Kennedy released a survey recap over the weekend stating “Georges says he has no plans to enter the race.” Meanwhile, most of the major contenders have already announced a time for when they will qualify, including Public Service Commissioner Scott Angelle, Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne, state Rep. John Bel Edwards and U.S. Sen. David Vitter.
One of the surprise moments may come from Chas Roemer of Baton Rouge, the president of the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education. He has refused to say whether he will qualify.
“I still don’t know,” Roemer said last week.
As for the Louisiana Legislature, there are now 34 open seats in the House and Senate. That means at the very least that 23% of the Louisiana Legislature is going to turn over next year, although some of the seats may be filled with legislators looking to switch chambers. The question is whether there might be a few more lawmakers unexpectedly choose not to qualify or draw last-minute challenges.
You can follow the qualifying action at the Louisiana Secretary of State website, which will be updated in real time for most races through the end of the qualifying period Thursday.
—Jeremy Alford
