1991 Louisiana gubernatorial election

The 1991 Louisiana gubernatorial election resulted in the election of Edwin Edwards to his fourth non-consecutive term as governor of Louisiana. The election received national and international attention due to the unexpectedly strong showing of David Duke, a former Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, who had ties to other white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups.

1991 Louisiana gubernatorial election

October 19, 1991 (first round)
November 16, 1991 (runoff)
 
Candidate Edwin Edwards David Duke
Party Democratic Republican
First round 523,096
33.76%
491,342
31.71%
Runoff 1,057,031
61.17%
671,009
38.83%

 
Candidate Buddy Roemer Clyde C. Holloway
Party Republican Republican
First round 410,690
26.51%
82,683
5.34%
Runoff Eliminated Eliminated


Governor before election

Buddy Roemer
Republican

Elected Governor

Edwin Edwards
Democratic

Background

In 1991 all elections in Louisiana—with the exception of U.S. presidential elections—followed a variation of the open primary system called the jungle primary. Candidates of any and all parties are listed on one ballot; voters need not limit themselves to the candidates of one party. Unless one candidate takes 50% or more of the vote in the first round, a run-off election is then held between the top two candidates, who may in fact be members of the same party. In this election, the first round of voting was held on October 19, 1991, and the runoff was held on November 16.

In 1990, Duke mounted a campaign for the U.S. Senate, losing to incumbent Democrat J. Bennett Johnston. Leading Republicans repudiated Duke's candidacy, citing his history as a white supremacist.

Abortive candidacies

Public Service Commissioner Kathleen Blanco, a Democrat, announced her candidacy in May 1991. Edwards was not impressed by her entry. It was the first time in 40 years a woman had seriously run for Governor but Edwards surmised she would not get out of single digits. Blanco, who came from Acadiana, could have complicated Edwards' bid for a fourth term but after 100 days she suddenly withdrew and ran for Public Service Commissioner again.[1] Blanco would later be elected governor in her own right in 2003.

Meanwhile, Governor Roemer was facing a potential opponent for the Republican support who could have denied him major party support he needed to stave off Holloway and Duke. Another prominent party-switcher, Secretary of State Fox McKeithen, who withdrew from a 1990 U.S. Senate bid, actively explored a gubernatorial bid. His father, former Governor John McKeithen would prove to be a strong asset had he run, but in the end McKeithen figured that his time had come and gone and ran for reelection as Secretary of State.[2]

First primary

After the withdrawal of Blanco and McKeithen, the field of candidates began to solidify. Then late in March, incumbent Governor Buddy Roemer changed his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican, dismaying many members of both parties. One irate Republican was the state party chairman, Billy Nungesser of New Orleans. After failing to get the Louisiana Republicans' endorsement convention canceled, Roemer announced he would skip the event. The convention, as expected, endorsed U.S. Representative Clyde C. Holloway, the favored candidate of the anti-abortion forces in the state, with whom Roemer was at odds at the time.[3]

The first round primary gubernatorial contest included Roemer, Edwin Edwards, David Duke, and Eighth District Congressman Holloway who all ran in Louisiana's open primary. Roemer was wounded by his mistakes as governor, while Edwards and Duke each had a passionate core group of supporters. Roemer placed third in the primary. One of the contributing factors to his defeat was a last-minute advertising barrage by Marine Shale owner Jack Kent; Marine Shale had been targeted by the Roemer administration as a polluter, and Kent spent $500,000 of his own money in the closing days of the campaign to purchase anti-Roemer commercials.

Runoff campaign

Faced with the alternative of David Duke, many Louisianans who were otherwise critical of Edwards now looked favorably on him as an alternative. This included Buddy Roemer, who had run in the primary on an "Anyone but Edwards" platform. He ended up endorsing Edwards rather than Duke, who was the putative Republican candidate.

The resulting runoff campaign was widely seen as one of the dirtiest and most negative campaigns in recent history. Edwards and his supporters seized on Duke's record as a white supremacist; Duke responded by claiming to be a born-again Christian who had renounced racism and anti-Semitism after his conversion.[4]

Nearly the entire Republican leadership rejected Duke's candidacy. In a news conference, President George H. W. Bush condemned Duke as unfit for public office:[4]

When someone has a long record, an ugly record, of racism and bigotry, that record simply cannot be erased by the glib rhetoric of a political campaign. So I believe David Duke is an insincere charlatan. I believe he's attempting to hoodwink the voters of Louisiana. I believe he should be rejected for what he is and what he stands for.

Humorous unofficial bumper stickers were created in support of Edwards over Duke, despite Edwards' negative reputation. One bumper sticker read "Vote for the Lizard, not the Wizard", while another read "Vote For The Crook: It's Important."[5][6][7]

Anti-Duke poster in New Orleans.

Debate

The runoff debate, held on November 6, 1991, received significant attention when reporter Norman Robinson questioned Duke. Robinson, who is African-American, told Duke that he was "scared" at the prospect of his winning the election because of his history of "diabolical, evil, vile" racist and anti-Semitic comments, some of which he read to Duke. He then pressed Duke for an apology. When Duke protested that Robinson was not being fair to him, Robinson replied that he did not think Duke was being honest. Jason Berry of the Los Angeles Times called it "startling TV" and the "catalyst" for the "overwhelming" turnout of black voters that helped former Governor Edwin Edwards defeat Duke.[8]

Results

First voting round, October 19

1991 Louisiana gubernatorial election
Party Candidate Votes  %
Democratic Edwin Edwards 523,096 33.76
Republican David Duke 491,342 31.71
Republican Buddy Roemer (incumbent) 410,690 26.51
Republican Clyde C. Holloway 82,683 5.34
Democratic Sam S. Jones 11,847 0.76
Other Ed Karst 9,663 0.62
Democratic Fred Dent 7,385 0.48
Republican Anne Thompson 4,118 0.27
Democratic Jim Crowley 4,000 0.26
Democratic Albert Powell 2,053 0.13
Other Ronnie Johnson 1,372 0.09
Democratic Cousin Ken Lewis 1,006 0.06
Total 1,549,255 100

Runoff, November 16

1991 Louisiana gubernatorial election runoff
Party Candidate Votes  %
Democratic Edwin Edwards 1,057,031 61.17
Republican David Duke 671,009 38.83
Majority 386,022 22.34
Total 1,728,040 100
Democratic gain from Republican
Runoff results by parish[9]
Parish Edwin Washington Edwards
Democratic
David Ernest Duke
Republican
Margin Total votes cast
#  % #  % #  %
Acadia 14,928 60.44% 9,772 39.56% 5,156 20.88% 24,700
Allen 6,171 60.46% 4,036 39.54% 2,135 20.92% 10,207
Ascension 14,792 53.48% 12,867 46.52% 1,925 6.96% 27,659
Assumption 6,488 59.67% 4,385 40.33% 2,103 19.34% 10,873
Avoyelles 9,044 53.72% 7,792 46.28% 1,252 7.44% 16,836
Beauregard 5,565 46.70% 6,351 53.30% 786 6.60% 11,916
Bienville 4,685 59.30% 3,216 40.70% 1,469 18.60% 7,901
Bossier 14,536 50.14% 14,457 49.86% 79 0.28% 28,993
Caddo 59,933 64.08% 33,591 35.92% 26,342 28.16% 93,524
Calcasieu 40,617 65.71% 21,193 34.29% 19,424 31.42% 61,810
Caldwell 2,112 37.04% 3,590 62.96% 1,478 15.92% 5,702
Cameron 2,669 64.75% 1,453 35.25% 1,216 19.50% 4,122
Catahoula 2,815 44.79% 3,470 55.21% 655 10.42% 6,285
Claiborne 4,329 57.70% 3,174 42.30% 1,155 15.40% 7,503
Concordia 4,544 47.41% 5,040 52.59% 496 5.18% 9,584
De Soto 6,607 59.11% 4,571 40.89% 2,036 18.22% 11,178
East Baton Rouge 100,138 66.41% 50,656 33.59% 49,482 32.82% 150,794
East Carroll 3,017 68.98% 1,357 31.02% 1,660 37.96% 4,374
East Feliciana 4,949 59.55% 3,362 40.45% 1,587 19.10% 8,311
Evangeline 8,947 54.50% 7,470 45.50% 1,477 9.00% 16,417
Franklin 4,410 41.65% 6,179 58.35% 1,769 16.70% 10,589
Grant 3,516 43.86% 4,500 56.14% 984 12.28% 8,016
Iberia 16,594 56.43% 12,814 43.57% 3,780 12.86% 29,408
Iberville 10,693 64.56% 5,870 35.44% 4,823 29.12% 16,563
Jackson 3,345 44.49% 4,173 55.51% 828 11.02% 7,518
Jefferson 102,261 59.30% 70,183 40.70% 32,078 18.60% 172,444
Jefferson Davis 8,581 63.79% 4,870 36.21% 3,711 27.58% 13,451
Lafayette 40,816 64.63% 22,336 35.37% 18,480 29.26% 63,152
Lafourche 21,346 59.29% 14,655 40.71% 6,691 18.58% 36,001
LaSalle 2,432 33.12% 4,910 66.88% 2,478 33.76% 7,342
Lincoln 9,382 61.22% 5,943 38.78% 3,439 22.44% 15,325
Livingston 12,152 39.58% 18,554 60.42% 6,402 20.84% 30,706
Madison 3,582 61.04% 2,286 38.96% 1,296 22.08% 5,868
Morehouse 6,517 47.30% 7,261 52.70% 744 5.60% 13,778
Natchitoches 8,870 58.24% 6,360 41.76% 2,510 16.48% 15,230
Orleans 173,744 87.02% 25,921 12.98% 147,823 74.04% 199,665
Ouachita 26,137 49.45% 26,722 50.55% 585 1.10% 52,859
Plaquemines 6,689 55.79% 5,301 44.21% 1,388 11.58% 11,990
Pointe Coupee 7,430 61.32% 4,687 38.68% 2,743 22.64% 12,117
Rapides 27,638 55.95% 21,762 44.05% 5,876 11.90% 49,400
Red River 2,674 53.34% 2,339 46.66% 335 6.68% 5,013
Richland 3,970 43.39% 5,179 56.61% 1,209 13.22% 9,149
Sabine 4,635 46.88% 5,251 53.12% 616 6.24% 9,886
St. Bernard 14,394 44.23% 18,153 55.77% 3,759 11.54% 32,547
St. Charles 12,680 61.66% 7,885 38.34% 4,795 23.32% 20,565
St. Helena 3,700 60.18% 2,448 39.82% 1,252 20.36% 6,148
St. James 8,028 66.34% 4,074 33.66% 3,954 32.68% 12,102
St. John the Baptist 11,993 64.21% 6,685 35.79% 5,308 28.42% 18,678
St. Landry 23,362 61.34% 14,725 38.66% 8,637 22.68% 38,087
St. Martin 12,726 64.20% 7,095 35.80% 5,631 28.40% 19,821
St. Mary 15,039 61.42% 9,447 38.58% 5,592 22.84% 24,486
St. Tammany 32,678 55.88% 25,800 44.12% 6,878 11.76% 58,478
Tangipahoa 18,779 53.28% 16,469 46.72% 2,310 6.56% 35,248
Tensas 1,993 58.84% 1,394 41.16% 599 17.68% 3,387
Terrebonne 19,799 59.17% 13,662 40.83% 6,137 18.34% 33,461
Union 4,029 40.09% 6,020 59.91% 1,991 19.82% 10,049
Vermillion 14,477 64.75% 7,882 35.25% 6,595 29.50% 22,359
Vernon 6,676 49.33% 6,856 50.67% 180 1.31% 13,532
Washington 9,157 46.40% 10,577 53.60% 1,420 7.20% 19,734
Webster 9,024 51.77% 8,406 48.23% 618 3.54% 17,430
West Baton Rouge 6,016 59.52% 4,092 40.48% 1,024 19.04% 10,108
West Carroll 1,625 31.12% 3,596 68.88% 1,971 37.76% 5,221
West Feliciana 2,896 64.47% 1,596 35.53% 1,300 28.94% 4,492
Winn 3,660 46.05% 4,288 53.95% 628 7.90% 7,948
Totals 1,057,031 61.17% 671,009 38.83% 386,022 22.34% 1,728,040

Although he won only 26 of 64 parishes, Edwards finished first in the primary with 523,096 votes (33.76%). Duke finished second, carrying 31 parishes with 491,342 votes (31.71%). Roemer, the incumbent, finished third with 410,690 votes (26.51%) and carried seven parishes. In the runoff, Edwards won the election with 1,057,031 votes. Most of the people who voted Roemer in the primary voted for Edwards in the runoff, helping Edwards win Jefferson and St. Tammany Parishes.[10]

Preceded by
1987 gubernatorial election
Louisiana gubernatorial elections Succeeded by
1995 gubernatorial election

References

  1. Bridges, Tyler (December 7, 2004). "Blanco's Bid". New Orleans News and Entertainment. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  2. Sadow, Jeff (December 16, 2009). "McKeithen's death raises provocative questions". Between The Lines. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  3. Thomas, Patrick (June 14, 1991). "Louisiana GOP Expected to Reject Roemer". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  4. Suro, David (July 2, 1996). "The 1991 Election: Louisiana – Bush Denounces Duke As Racist and Charlatan". The New York Times.
  5. "The No-Win Election", TIME Magazine, November 25, 1991
  6. "Voters to pick 'scoundrel' or ex-KKK Grand Wizard" Archived 2016-04-24 at the Wayback Machine, Milwaukee Sentinel, November 15, 1991
  7. Photo of bumper sticker Archived September 25, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, New Orleans Times-Picayune
  8. "Duke Gets His Comeuppance From the Victims of His Hate Message : Politics: Up until an amazing TV exchange, Louisiana's blacks had remained on the sidelines. Then they flooded the polls". Los Angeles Times. November 24, 1991. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
  9. "Nov 16 1991 (by parish) Election Results". sos.la.gov. Louisiana Secretary of State. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
  10. "Blacks and affluent whites give Edwards victory". New York Times. November 18, 1991.

Sources

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