2020 Census and Redistricting Thread: Louisiana

[Bernie Derangement Syndrome Haver]

Wouldn't it be easier to draw out Garret Graves than Julia Letlow? Is seniority a factor in why Republicans don't seem willing to do that?

Re: the earlier discourse on Letlow's crossover appeal - keep in mind that she won big in 2021 on a low-turnout special election with a lot of sympathy vote (young widow with two young kids running for the seat her husband got elected to but died before he could take office from Covid). Not sure if that sympathy vote still could play a role in any future crossover support, but that and her public pro-vaccine stance likely helps with some Democrats.

[Bernie Derangement Syndrome Haver]

I'm glad they're not drawing out Julia Letlow. I like her. I don't agree with a lot of her views, but I tolerate them and respect her for being a young single mother who went to Congress after her elected husband tragically died of Covid before he could take office (and the fact that she tried to combat vaccine hesitancy among Republicans). She's a quiet and hard-working member of Congress who you can tell is in it to get things done for her constituents and not be a bombthrower.

Question though - if Graves runs against her in the primary for the 5th, could he have a shot? Letlow's district will be gaining a good amount of Graves's political base in southern Baton Rouge and the Livingston Parish area. That's got to be a significant chunk of the primary electorate.

[Bernie Derangement Syndrome Haver]

They also appear to be abolishing the famous jungle primary in favor of closed R/D primaries in March and a GE decided by a traditional plurality without a runoff.  Wow.

Good. The jungle primary is stupid.

[Bernie Derangement Syndrome Haver]

So they didn't go with the splitting southern EBR three ways to give Clay Higgins some of it after all. And District 2 still snakes into Thibodaux but no longer goes all the way to Houma.

[Bernie Derangement Syndrome Haver]

Poor Letlow I’d rather have just one Black seat instead of getting rid of her. It’s a shame because she’s the only somewhat decent Republican in the Louisiana delegation. It’s not possible but I would have loved for Clay Higgins to get the axe. Hopefully this new map is reinstated, it’s dumb for this to be happening so late.