The Vitter Defeat in Louisiana

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The Vitter Defeat in Louisiana

By: davenj1 (Diary) | November 23rd, 2015 at 04:05 PM

 

Although not a total surprise, the loss of Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) 84% to Democrat John Bel Edwards in the gubernatorial race needs to be taken in context. Losing this seat simply creates a net zero at the Governor’s office level since the GOP picked up a seat in Kentucky earlier in November. In an earlier article, I predicted that Vitter would prevail. Obviously he did not. In fact, in the end it was not even a close race.

 

So what does it mean? Does it portend anything for 2016? As far as Louisiana gubernatorial results the year before a presidential election, in only one instance since 1972 did a Democratic presidential candidate win- Bill Clinton in 1992 after the 1991 election. In all other instances, a Republican won the White House when Louisiana voters opted for a Democratic Governor. In other words, it portends very little.

 

Because Louisiana will have a Democratic governor come 2016 does not mean that the fine folks of Louisiana have had some kind of Democratic Party epiphany. Instead, the results are intrinsic to the state and, more importantly, intrinsic to the Republican candidate- Vitter himself.