Republican U.S. Sen. David Vitter is trying to rally last-minute support from conservative voters in advance of Louisiana’s Saturday runoff election for governor, a race that shows Democratic state Rep. John Bel Edwards leading in a state that usually marks an easy win for the GOP.
As The Associated Press reports, the competition has become a slugfest of attack ads and one of the most expensive governor’s races in Louisiana history, with at least $30 million spent by candidates and outside groups.
When Vitter launched his campaign in January 2014, he immediately became the front-runner. He pulled in tremendous sums of campaign cash and relied on a dominant political machine that he has used to get himself and his allies regularly elected to Louisiana offices.
More recently, however, the race shifted to a referendum on Vitter, particularly his 2007 prostitution scandal, in which he apologized for a “serious sin” after he was linked through phone records to Washington’s “D.C. Madam.” He has also faced criticism for his campaign tactics, and he has been unable to unify GOP support. During the runoff campaign, Vitter has lagged in fundraising and polls.
Vitter supporters say the senator has been hampered by the unpopularity of term-limited Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal, who ended a presidential campaign this week. Those supporters cite the recent Kentucky governor’s race, where Republican Matt Bevin won despite polls showing him lagging his Democratic opponent, to suggest Vitter will prevail in the end.
“I feel conservative support building every day,” Vitter says.
Edwards, who began his gubernatorial bid as a little-known lawmaker from rural Tangipahoa Parish, responded to the spike in Vitter’s disapproval ratings with a campaign built on personal integrity, a resumé that includes a West Point degree and a tenure as an Army Ranger, and pledges that he’d run a moderate administration built on bipartisanship.
“This election is too critical. The stakes are too high. We cannot have someone who comes from a dysfunctional Washington political environment,” Edwards says.
If elected, Edwards would be the first Democrat elected statewide since 2008 in a state that favors Republicans in those races.
