Though still many months away, 2020 will bring a mayor’s race to Baton Rouge and already potential challengers to incumbent Mayor-president Sharon Weston Broome are beginning to test the political waters.
Among them is 31-year-old Republican businessman and restaurateur Jordan Piazza, who tells Daily Report he plans to formally announce his candidacy this spring.
Piazza—who co-owns Phil’s Oyster Bar & Seafood Restaurant and Uncle Earl’s Bar with his brother, Anthony—says while working in the public sector was not his original career path, he has felt a “true calling” in recent months to serve the community.
“As I’ve watched the challenges that our great city continues to face, I believe it’s time for the next generation of leaders to get involved implementing real change,” he says.
A Baton Rouge native and graduate of LSU, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in agricultural business, Piazza began his career in the corporate office of Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux. He then spent several years as business manager for Raising Cane’s before re-creating in 2017 the popular Phil’s Oyster Bar, that, for decades, was owned and operated by his father, the late Gus Piazza.
In recent months, Piazza says he has been meeting with business and community leaders and is encouraged by the feedback he has received.
Also said to be eyeing the fall campaign are Metro Council members Matt Watson, a Republican, and Tara Wicker, a Democrat, as well as Democratic State Rep. C. Denise Marcelle.
Both Watson and Marcelle acknowledge they are considering a run, though neither is ready to officially throw their hat in the ring.
“I’ve been asked by a number of people throughout this parish to run for mayor and it’s compelling,” Marcelle says. “However, I have not made a decision.”
Wicker says her focus at the moment is on District 10 and that “any future political aspirations are not really the focus of my public conversations at this time.”
Regardless of who enters the contest, beating Broome will be a challenge, given the inherent advantages of incumbency.
“It’s highly unlikely that someone will beat her, but possible,” political analyst Bernie Pinsonat says. “Anything is possible in politics and it’s a long time between now and October but I think betting money will be on Broome.”
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